caltrop

English

A caltrop used in the Vietnam War

The coat of arms of Boulaide, Luxembourg, featuring caltrops

Centaurea calcitrapa

Tribulus terrestris

Alternative forms

• caltrap

Etymology

From Old English calcatrippe (“plant that trips”), from Medieval Latin calcatrippa (“thistle”), from Latin calx or calcare + trappa.

Pronunciation

• (General American) enPR: kăl'trəp, IPA^(key): /ˈkæltɹəp/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

  • Rhymes: -æltɹəp
• (UK) enPR: kăl'trəp, IPA^(key): /ˈkæltɹəp/, enPR: kôl'trəp, IPA^(key): /ˈkɔːltɹəp/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

  • Rhymes: -æltɹəp, -ɔːltɹəp

Noun

caltrop (plural caltrops)

2. (weaponry) A small, metal object with spikes arranged so that, when thrown onto the ground, one always faces up as a threat to pedestrians, horses, and vehicles (also used as a heraldic charge).
   • 1858, The journal of the British Archaeological Association:

     […] her father, the emperor Alexius, who reigned AD 1081-1118, ordered caltrops to be cast in front of his archers […]

   • 1954, Joseph Needham, Ling Wang, Science and civilisation in China:

     By Sung times, several different types of caltrops had been developed. As in earlier times, both caltrops could be made from both wood and iron...

   • 2000, Alan Vick, Aerospace operations in urban environments: exploring new concepts:

     Caltrops, tetrahedrons, and similar devices are designed to puncture vehicle tires or limit foot traffic. The standard design has four points.

3. (colloquial) The starthistle, Centaurea calcitrapa, a plant with sharp thorns.
4. Any of a number of flowering plants in the family Zygophyllaceae, including several members of the genus Kallstroemia and the species Tribulus terrestris, native to warm temperate and tropical regions.

Synonyms

• (weaponry): caltrap, galtrop, cheval trap, galthrap, galtrap, calthrop, crow’s foot, jackrock
• (starthistle): knapweed
• (Tribulus terrestris): puncturevine, cat's head, yellow vine, goathead, burra, gokharu, bindii.

Coordinate terms

• (weaponry): spike strip

Derived terms

• caltrop family (Zygophyllaceae)
• water caltrop

Translations

weaponry

• Albanian: please add this translation if you can
• Arabic: please add this translation if you can
• Armenian: please add this translation if you can
• Belarusian: кальчатка (kalʹčatka), чычак (čyčak), драцяны вожык (dracjany vóžyk)
• Catalan: obriülls m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 蒺藜 (zh) (jílí)

• Dutch: voetangel (nl) m, kraaienpoot (nl) m
• Esperanto: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: jalkapiikki, kavioansa
• French: chausse-trape (fr), pied de corbeau
• Galician: abrollo (gl) m
• Georgian: please add this translation if you can
• German: Krähenfuß (de) m, Fußangel f
• Greek:

  Ancient: τρίβολος m (tríbolos)

• Hungarian: vassulyom, lábtövis
• Irish: grán catha m
• Italian: tribolo (it) m, piede di corvo (it) m
• Japanese: 鉄菱 (てつびし, tetsubishi)
• Korean: 마름쇠 (mareumsoe)
• Latin: mūrex m, tribulus m
• Macedonian: please add this translation if you can
• Mongolian: please add this translation if you can
• Portuguese: abrolho (pt) m, estrepe (pt) m, miguelito (modern)
• Russian: чесно́к (ru) m (česnók) ("garlic"), про́волочный ёж m (próvoločnyj jož)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Roman: vranina nòga f

• Spanish: abrojo (es)
• Swedish: fotangel (sv) c
• Thai: ขวาก (th) (kwàak)
• Turkish: demir dikeni (tr)
• Ukrainian: please add this translation if you can
• Vietnamese: please add this translation if you can

starthistle

• Bulgarian: бодлива метличина (bodliva metličina)
• Catalan: obriülls m, cagatripa f, card vermell m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 紫星薊／紫星蓟 (zǐxīngjì)

• Dutch: kalketrip (nl) c
• Finnish: piikkikaunokki
• French: centaurée chausse-trape (fr), chardon étoilé (fr)
• Hungarian: úti imola
• Portuguese: abrolho (pt) m
• Russian: василёк колючеголо́вый m (vasiljók koljučegolóvyj)
• Spanish: encojaperros, garbanzo del cura

Tribulus terrestris

• Arabic: حَسَك m (ḥasak)
• Armenian: տատաշ (hy) (tataš)

  Old Armenian: տատասկ (tatask)

• Azerbaijani: dəmirtikan
• Bulgarian: бабини зъби (babini zǎbi)
• Catalan: tríbol m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 蒺藜 (zh) (jílí)

• Finnish: okarennokki (fi)
• French: tribule terrestre (fr)
• Galician: abrollo (gl) m
• Georgian: კუროსთავი (ḳurostavi), ტატაში (ṭaṭaši)
• Hungarian: királydinnye (hu)
• Italian: tribulo comune
• Japanese: ハマビシ (hamabishi)
• Kabardian: жьэныпэуц (źɛnəpɛwuc)
• Kurdish:

  Northern Kurdish: xencere

• Latin: tribulus m
• Macedonian: ба́бин за́б m (bábin záb)
• Navajo: shash nátʼoh
• Persian: خارخاسک (xâr-xâsak)
• Portuguese: abrolho (pt) m
• Romanian: colții-babei (ro) m
• Russian: я́корец сте́лющийся m (jákorec stéljuščijsja), я́корец назе́мный m (jákorec nazémnyj)
• Spanish: abrojo terrestre, cadillo, cuerno de chivo, tribulo, cruz maltesa
• Tamil: நெருஞ்சி (ta) (neruñci), நெருஞ்சில் (ta) (neruñcil), கிட்டிரம் (kiṭṭiram)
• Turkish: çobançökerten, demir dikeni (tr)

See also

• caltrop on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Centaurea calcitrapa on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Kallstroemia on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Tribulus terrestris on Wikipedia.Wikipedia