Parachute

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /ˈpæɹəʃuːt/

Definitions

1. A device consisting of a large piece of fabric attached to cords that opens to slow the descent of a person or object falling from an aircraft
2. A fabric canopy deployed from a harness to decelerate a falling person or object through air resistance
3. An apparatus with a deployable cloth envelope and suspension lines used to safely lower people or cargo from aircraft

Etymology: The word has a double-barrelled French make-up. "Para-" comes from the sense of protection found in "parasol," and "chute" means "fall," so the whole thing reads roughly as "protection against a fall." The device was named for its job before the word ever described a sky-diving canopy. English borrowed the term directly from French, where "parachute" was already in use for the umbrella-like canopy that breaks a descent. The "para-" element is the same one that appears in "parasol," an object meant to shield you from the sun, which makes the logic of the coinage easy to follow: a shelter that guards against a particular kind of fall rather than against rain or glare.

Synonyms: chute, falling device