picador

[ pik-uh-dawr; Spanish pee-kah-thawr ]

noun

, plural pi·ca·dors, Spanish pi·ca·do·res [pee-kah-, thaw, -, r, es].

1. one of the mounted assistants to a matador, who opens the bullfight by enraging the bull and weakening its shoulder muscles with a lance.

picador

/ ˈpɪkəˌdɔː /

noun

1. bullfighting a horseman who pricks the bull with a lance in the early stages of a fight to goad and weaken it

Word History and Origins

Origin of picador¹

1790–1800; < Spanish: literally, pricker, equivalent to pic ( ar ) to prick ( pique ¹ ) + -ador < Latin -ātor -ator

Word History and Origins

Origin of picador¹

C18: from Spanish, literally: pricker, from picar to prick; see pique ¹

Example Sentences

Makeover goals “We wanted to bring out an eco-thriller dimension a little more,” says Angel, FSG’s publisher, of the Picador paperback, which will be published in March.

From New York Times

Paperback Designed by Alex Merto, Picador’s art director, the new cover presents Justin Metz’s overhead illustration of a forest from the perspective of a flying drone.

From New York Times

By Jeff VanderMeer Picador: 336 pages, $19 If you buy books linked on our site, The Times may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookstores.

From Los Angeles Times

He set it aside to enter a fantasy-novel contest sponsored by the publishers Gollancz and Pan/Picador.

From New York Times

A longtime bookseller, she’s worked everywhere from Picador — FSG’s paperback imprint — to Skylight, where she first met Heiser and Cornell.

From Los Angeles Times

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