Kites Were Named After a Bird
A kite is a flown fabric frame. It takes its name from a bird of prey that hangs in the air.
A kite is a light frame covered with fabric, flown on a line, and also a bird of prey. The bird came first: a red kite hangs almost motionless on rising air, adjusting its forked tail, and the toy was named for looking like one. *Fly a kite* means to test an idea, and in finance a *kite* is a fraudulent cheque. Kites were used for serious science too: Alexander Wilson measured air temperature with one in 1749, before Franklin's famous experiment.
- A flown frame. *Flying a kite.*
- A bird of prey. *A red kite.*
- To test an idea. *Fly a kite.*
- A fraudulent cheque. *Kiting.*
- Old English — *cyta*. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | kite | A kite. |
| Plural | kites | Kites. |
| Verb | kite | Kiting. |
| Compound | kitesurfing | Kitesurfing. |
| Old English | cyta | A kite. |
- The children flew a kite.Toy.
- A red kite circled overhead.Bird.
- They flew a kite in the press.Idiom.
Kites in science
- Alexander Wilson measured upper-air temperature with kites in 1749
- Benjamin Franklin's experiment followed in 1752
- Weather kites carried instruments aloft into the twentieth century
- The Wright brothers tested wing designs as kites first
- Marconi used one to lift an aerial for early radio work
Old English *cyta*, the bird, with the toy sense from the 1600s.
Is the toy named after the bird?
Yes. A red kite hangs almost motionless on rising air, and the flown frame was named for the resemblance.
Were kites used in science?
Yes. Alexander Wilson measured upper-air temperature with them in 1749, and weather kites carried instruments aloft for over a century.