# strēle
## Latvian
### Alternative forms

* (dialectal form) strēla

### Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *strel-, *strēl-, from *ster- (“line, streak, stripe; jet, spurt; beam”) (whence also Latvian stars (“ray, beam”), q.v.) with an extra l. The same stem also yielded the 17th-/18th-century verb strēlēt (“to shoot”), later replaced by šaut (“to shoot”). The basic meaning must have been “to scatter, to throw (around)”, from which “to shoot” and, as a nominalized form, “that which is shot”. Cognates include Lithuanian strėlė̃, strėlà (“arrow; shoot, branch; rafter”), Old Church Slavonic стрѣла (strěla), Belarusian, Bulgarian, Russian стрела́ (strelá), Ukrainian стріла́ (strilá, “arrow”), Czech střela (“arrow, projectile”), Polish strzała (“arrow”), Old High German strāla (“arrow, lightning bolt”), German Strahl (“ray, beam”).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: [stɾɛ̂ːlɛ]
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### Noun

strēle f (5th declension)
* (chiefly figuratively) arrow, dart (projectile thrown with a bow)
    traucas kā izšauta strēle ― speeding, rushing like an arrow (lit. like a shot arrow)
* arrow (a component part that is thin and long, usually used for pointing)
    pa skalu slīd strēle, norādīdama iegrimes dziļumu ― along the scale the arrow moved, showing the depth of the sinking
    kad Lilija pēdējo reizi paraudzījās pulkstenī, zeltītās strēles iezīmēja ceturksni uz deviņiem ― when Lilija last looked at the clock, the golden arrows showed a quarter of nine
* something narrow and elongated like an arrow
    ledus gan plaisāja sīkās strēlēs, tomēr izturēja ― the ice did crack in tiny arrows, but it held, endured
* (of light) beam, ray
    putekļi vērpās saules strēlēs, kas staroja iekšā pa logu ― the dust was spinning under (lit. in) the sun rays which shone in through the window
    kā ugunīga pātaga tumsu pārcirta zibens strēle — like a fiery whip, the lightning bolt (lit. arrow, ray) cut through the darkness
* (of gas, fog, smoke) narrow, elongated formation, strip
    pāri debesīm traucās melnas mākoņu strēles, brīžiem aizsegdamas mēnesi ― across the sky rushed black cloud strips, sometimes hiding the moon
    zilganas dūmu strēles peldēja pāri ievu krūmiem ― bluish smoke strips floated across the cherry bushes
* (of land, territory) strip, stretch (narrow, elongated area)
    zemes, smilšu strēle ― a strip of land, of sand
    tāda bija jūrmala šai ciemā: šaura krasta strēle ― such was the seaside at (= near) this village: a narrow stretch of coast
* (technology) jib, boom (the projecting arm of a crane)
    līgani pagriezās celtņa strēle ― smoothly turned the crane jib, boom

#### Usage notes

The preferred term for "arrow" as a weapon is bulta, while strēle is more frequently used metaphorically, or when talking about pointing signs or component parts.

#### Synonyms

* (of "arrow"): bulta
* (of "pointer"): rādītājs
* (of "strip"): josla

#### Derived terms

* strēlnieks, strēlniece
* (archaic term) strēlēt

#### See also

* loks
* stops

### References

* ↑ Karulis, Konstantīns (1992) “strēle”, in Latviešu Etimoloģijas Vārdnīca‎ (in Latvian), Rīga: AVOTS, →ISBN