▪ I. kite, n.
(kaɪt)
Forms: 1 cyta, 4 kete, kijt, kuytte, 4–5 kuyte, 4–7 kyte, (6 kight, -e, kyght, Sc. kyt), 5– kite.
[OE. c{yacu}ta (:—*kūtjon-); no related word appears in the cognate languages.]
1. A bird of prey of the family Falconidæ and subfamily Milvinæ, having long wings, tail usually forked, and no tooth in the bill. a. orig. and esp. the common European species Milvus ictinus (M. regalis, M. vulgaris), also distinctively called fork-tailed kite, royal kite, or (from its reddish-brown general colour) red kite, and glede, formerly common in England, but now very rare.
| c 725 Corpus Gloss. 333 Butio, cyta. 13.. K. Alis. 3048 Nultow never late ne skete A goshauk maken of a kete. c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s T. 321 Ther cam a kyte, whil they weren so wrothe, And baar awey the boon bitwixe hem bothe. c 1450 Bk. Hawkyng in Rel. Ant. I. 298 Draw hym oute of the mewe and put him in a grove, in a crowys neste, other in a kuytes. 1539 Tonstall Serm. Palm Sund. (1823) 74 Their carkases there to lye to be deuoured by kytes & crowes. 1593 Shakes. 2 Hen. VI, iii. i. 249 Wer't not all one, an emptie Eagle were set, To guard the Chicken from a hungry Kyte. 1663 Cowley Verses & Ess., Ode Liberty vi, To kites and meaner Birds he leaves the mangled Prey. 1766 Pennant Zool. (1768) I. 141 The kite generally breeds in large forests, or wooded mountainous countries. 1828 Scott F.M. Perth xix, Her ear for bad news was as sharp as a kite's scent for carrion. 1870 Morris Earthly Par. II. iii. 301 With wide wing The fork-tailed restless kite sailed over her, Hushing the twitter of the linnets near. |
b. Applied with qualifying words to other species of the genus, or of the subfamily Milvinæ.
Arabian k.,
Milvus ægyptiacus;
Australian or
square-tailed k.,
M. isurus (
Lophoictinia isura);
black k.,
M. ater of southern Europe and northern Africa;
black-winged k.,
Elanus cæruleus of northern Africa;
brahminy k.,
Haliastur indus of Hindustan;
Indian or
pariah k.,
Milvus govinda;
Mississippi k.,
Ictinia mississippiensis;
pearl or
white-tailed k.,
Elanus leucurus of N. America;
swallow-tailed k.,
Elanoides forficatus of N. America.
Also locally applied (or misapplied), with or without qualification, to birds belonging to other divisions of Falconidæ, as the Buzzard (
bald k.), Hen-harrier, and Kestrel.
| 1611 Cotgr., Buzart, a Buzzard, or Bald-kite. c 1813 [see Brahminee a.]. 1843 Yarrell Brit. Birds I. 72 The Swallow-tailed Kite..is only an occasional visitor to this country. 1847 Leichhardt Jrnl. x. 321 We had to guard it by turns..from a host of square-tailed kites (Milvus isurus). 1893 Newton Dict. Birds 491 There is a second European species..the Milvus migrans or M. ater of most authors, smaller in size... In some districts this is much commoner than the red Kite. |
2. fig. A person who preys upon others, a rapacious person; a sharper; also more indefinitely as a term of reproach or detestation.
| a 1553 Udall Royster D. v. v. (Arb.) 83 Roister Doister that doughtie kite. 1599 Shakes. Hen. V, ii. i. 80 Fetch forth the Lazar Kite of Cressids kinde, Doll Teare-sheete. 1605 ― Lear i. iv. 284 Detested Kite, thou lyest. 1606 ― Ant. & Cl. iii. xiii. 89 Ah you Kite. c 1614 Fletcher Wit without Money i. i, Maintaining hospitals for kites and curs. 1841 Carlyle Misc., Baillie (1872) VI. 235 Food for learned sergeants and the region kites! |
3. a. [From its hovering in the air like the bird.] A toy consisting of a light frame, usually of wood, with paper or other light thin material stretched upon it; mostly in the form of an isosceles triangle with a circular arc as base, or a quadrilateral symmetrical about the longer diagonal; constructed (usually with a tail of some kind for the purpose of balancing it) to be
flown in a strong wind by means of a long string attached. Also, a modification of the toy kite designed to support a man in the air or to form part of an unpowered flying machine (
cf. aeroplane 1).
Kites are also used of special shapes, or with special appliances, for various scientific and other purposes,
e.g. the bird-kite, used to frighten partridges (see
kite v. 2);
cf. also
electric a. 2 b,
quot. 1898 here, and combs. in 9 b.
| 1664 Butler Hud. ii. iii. 414 As a Boy one night Did flie his Tarsel of a Kite, The strangest long-wing'd Hawk that flies. 1672 Marvell Reh. Transp. i. 58 He may make a great Paper-kite of his own Letter of 850 pages. 1789 Mrs. Piozzi Journ. France, etc. I. 129 Boys flying kites, cut square like a diamond. 1826 Viney & Pocock Brit. Pat. 5420, This Patent is obtained for an Invention by which kites are made to act as..sails, for the purpose of navigating or drawing vessels.., for the purpose of raising weights or persons in the air,..or for the hoisting of flags. The peculiarities of these kites are:—..they have four lines by which their power is controlled or their course directed. 1827 D. Johnson Ind. Field Sports 22 A frame-work of split bamboos, resembling the frame of a paper kite. 1875 A. M. Clark Brit. Pat. 169, This Invention relates to a kind of kite or ærial apparatus to be used for military and other purposes, its chief object being to raise to the desired height in the air, and to support in a sufficiently tranquil position for reconnoitring a scout, look out man, or sentry. 1880 Daily News 1 Sept. 5/2 The kite has been fiercely attacked as..a mean advantage to take of the birds [partridges]. 1889 H. S. Maxim Brit. Pat. 16,883, My invention is chiefly designed..to provide for the construction of an aëronautic machine which can, while moving forward in the air, be caused to rise or descend at any desired velocity or to travel at any predetermined height above the ground... I provide an adjustable covered framework or kite of very large dimensions... For convenience of description I will hereinafter term this covered framework or kite an ‘aëroplane’. 1893 23rd Rep. Aeronaut. Soc. 17 What we have to do is to make the wings, whether fixed or flapping, in the requisite form, and add aëroplanes or kites, and find the necessary power to drive them along at their proper angles. 1894 Proc. Internat. Conf. Aerial Navigation, Chicago, 1893 253 Among the different free-flying models which I exhibited..in the large hall of the Engineering Society in Vienna there was a model of my gliding aeroplane or kite, which illustrated the support to be obtained from the air. 1898 Westm. Gaz. 8 Mar. 10/1 Our own War Office have intimated that they are not prepared..to make further trials with kites for military purposes. |
| fig. 1781 Bell's Poets I. Life King p. xxiii, Some of the political kites which flew about at that time. |
b. to fly (or send up) a kite (
fig.): to try ‘how the wind blows’,
i.e. in what direction affairs are tending. (See also 4.) A proposal or suggestion offered or ‘thrown out’ tentatively in order to ‘see how the wind blows’. (
Cf. ballon d'essai.) See also
fly v.
1 5 a.
| 1831 Palmerston in Sir H. Lytton Bulwer Life (1871) II. 65 Charles John [King of Sweden] flew a kite at us for the Garter the other day, but without success. 1902 Nature 14 Aug. 380/2 A few suggestions have been thrown out by various students which must be regarded more as trial hypotheses than as definite conclusions, indeed they should be looked upon rather as ‘Kites’. 1904 Westm. Gaz. 5 Aug. 2/2 The new Army scheme..is to be debated on Monday, but whether as a Government proposal or the private kite of the Minister for War remains wholly obscure. 1973 A. MacVicar Painted Doll Affair ii. 29 ‘I'm sorry ye're lumbered wi' me,’ he said, sounding anything but sorry. I ignored this blatant kite. |
c. An aeroplane.
slang,
esp. Services'.
The popular use of
kite in this sense
prob. originated with the ‘box-kite’ aeroplane (see
box n.2 24); but the uses in
quots. 1838, 1909 are direct applications of
kite in sense 3.
| [1838 J. H. Pennington Aerostation, (caption) Steam⁓kite, or inclined plane, for navigating the air.] 1909 S. F. Cody in Aeronaut. Jrnl. XIII. 15/2, I had to turn my hobby into manufacturing a kite in order to raise money to build a flying machine, or to put ‘power’ into my kite, consequently the term ‘Power Kite’. Ibid. 19/1 This is the finished power kite ready to start. The screws are not really propellers. You may call them tractors or propellers, which you like. 1917 in A. J. L. Scott Hist. Sixty Squadron R.A.F. (1920) 100 He told me that he had managed to fly his kite back with great difficulty. 1934 T. E. Lawrence Let. 19 Mar. (1938) 793 The German kites will be new and formidable. 1942 T. Rattigan Flare Path i. 33 A kite from the Polish squadron. 1952 M. Tripp Faith is Windsock xii. 183 The Squadron hasn't lost a single kite in the last three raids. 1969 [see Harry n.2 8 b]. |
d. Phr.
high as a kite: see
high a. 16 b.
4. a. Commercial slang. (With jocular allusion to a paper kite, sense 3.) A bill of exchange, or negotiable instrument, not representing any actual transaction, but used for raising money on credit; an accommodation bill. A person thus raising money is said to
fly a kite: see
fly v.
1 5 a.
| 1805 Sporting Mag. XXV. 290 Flying a kite in Ireland is a metaphorical phrase for raising money on accommodation bills. ? 1817 M. Edgeworth Love & Law i. i, Here's bills plinty..but even the kites, which I can fly as well as any man, won't raise the wind for me now. 1859 Riddles & Jokes 98 Plunkett..used to say there was this difference between boys' kites and men's kites—that with boys the wind raised the kites, but with men the kites raised the wind. 1894 J. C. Jeaffreson Bk. Recoll. I. v. 84 The wretched piece of paper, with my autograph upon it. But no harm came to me from the little kite. |
b. Criminals' slang. A communication (
esp. one that is illicit or surreptitious);
spec. a letter or verbal message smuggled into, out of, or within a prison.
| 1859 G. W. Matsell Vocabulum 49 Kite, a letter; fancy stocks. 1923 J. F. Fishman Crucibles of Crime ix. 203 Sometimes..prisoners manage to plant notes in various parts of the prison which are to be picked up by the intended recipient. This practice of ‘shooting’ contraband notes is known among the prisoners as ‘flying a kite’. 1925 Flynn's 3 Jan. 665/2 Kite, a message per lip. Kite, a letter or note. 1927 [see sense 4 c]. 1953 H. Bryan Inside (1954) xvii. 279 Having settled on the girl, one would send her a ‘kite’, or love letter. 1960 Wentworth & Flexner Dict. Amer. Slang 194/2 Fly a kite. 1. To write a letter; esp. to smuggle a letter into or out of prison. Underworld use. 2. To send an airmail letter, often requesting money or assistance. Modern use, mainly underworld but gaining some popularity. 1971 N.Y. Times 21 Oct. 52/2 Kite, a complaint to the police about an illegal operation, often originating with a disgruntled gambler. |
c. slang. A cheque (sense 3),
esp. a blank cheque or a cheque drawn on insufficient funds or forged from a stolen cheque-book.
| 1927 Dialect Notes V. 446 Fly a kite, v. (1) To pass a bad cheque. (2) To sell worthless stocks and bonds. (3) To write mournful letters, as of prisoners, to sympathetic old women and charitable institutions. 1928 E. Wallace Gunner xxx. 243 He had spent the afternoon searching London for the right ‘kites’. There is quite a brisk trade in blank cheque forms. 1936 J. Curtis Gilt Kid iv. 45 Used to say that he'd been done for kites, but everyone reckoned it was for poncing. 1962 R. Cook Crust on its Uppers i. 21 The real morries..flying dodgy kites with each other at bent spielers till the punter..outs his kiting-book too and scribbles a straight one. 1969 T. Parker Twisting Lane 41 He's in for what they call ‘kites’, dud cheques, you know. |
5. Naut. a. (
pl.) A name for the highest sails of a ship, which are set only in a light wind. Also
flying-kites.
| 1856 Emerson Eng. Traits ii. 33 Our good master keeps his kites up to the last moment, studding-sails alow and aloft. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Flying-kites, the very lofty sails, which are only set in fine weather, such as sky⁓sails, royal studding-sails, and all above them. 1875 Bedford Sailor's Pocket Bk. iv. (ed. 2) 90 When the glass falls low, Prepare for a blow; When it rises high, Let all your kites fly. |
b. On a minesweeper, a device attached to a sweep-wire submerging it to the requisite depth when it is towed over a minefield.
| 1915 Chambers's Jrnl. June 386/1 Between the vessels of each pair is the sweep-wire, sunk to the necessary depth in the water by means of towed ‘kites’, wooden arrangements acting on the same principle as the ordinary air-kites. 1923 Man. Seamanship (Admiralty) II. 172 The present form of kite consists of a specially shaped metal plate which has a tendency to dive when towed. This is towed over the stern by a kite wire. |
6. Local name of a fish, the Brill.
| 1836 Yarrell Brit. Fishes II. 241 The Kite of the Devonshire and Cornish coasts is the same as the Brill. 1884 Day Brit. Fishes II. 16. |
7. Name for a variety of the Almond Tumbler pigeon, having black plumage with the inner webs of the quill-feathers passing into red or yellow.
| 1867 Tegetmeier Pigeons xi. 118 Kites, though seldom regarded as exhibition birds are exceedingly valuable as breeding stock... An Almond and a Kite will often produce an Almond and a Kite in each nest. |
8. Geom. A quadrilateral figure symmetrical about one diagonal (from its resemblance to the form of a toy kite, sense 3); also called
deltoid.
9. attrib. and
Comb. a. in sense 1, as
kite-and-crow,
kite-colour;
kite-coloured,
kite-like adj.;
kite bar, a bar or stripe of an undesirable colour in the plumage of a fancy pigeon;
kite-eagle, name for
Neopus (Ictinætus) malayensis, an East Indian hawk;
kite-falcon, a hawk of the genus
Baza, having a crested head and two teeth in the beak;
kite-fish, a species of gurnard;
† kite-key (
erron. kit-key), a name for the ‘key’ or fruit of the ash-tree;
kite-tailed a., having a long tail like that of a kite, as the
kite-tailed widgeon, a species of duck (
Dafila acuta) found in Florida;
† kite-wolf, rendering of
Gr. ἰκτῖνος (properly ‘a kite’, also a kind of wolf).
b. in sense 3, as
kite expert,
kite-line,
kite-maker,
kite-string;
kite-faced,
kite-like,
kite-shaped adjs.;
kite-balloon, a balloon with a long string or wire attached, used for scientific or other purposes;
Kite mark,
Kitemark, a quality mark, similar in shape to a kite, granted for use on goods approved by the British Standards Institution; also
transf.; hence
kite-mark v. trans., to use the Kite mark on;
kite-marked ppl. a., bearing the Kite mark;
kite-photograph, a photograph taken by means of a camera attached to a kite or kite-balloon;
kite-tail (
plug), name for an obstetric dressing made with pledgets of lint or gauze affixed at intervals to a string or tape, like the pieces of paper in the tail of a kite;
kite-track (see
quot.).
c. in sense 4,
kite-man, a person who obtains money against bills of exchange or cheques that will not be honoured;
spec. (see
quot. 1967).
| 1887 Academy 7 May 319/1 *Kite-and-crow struggles of Swabian and Würtemberger. |
| 1876 R. Fulton Illustr. Bk. Pigeons 108 A softer shade of blue, with brown, or what are called by Pouter fanciers ‘*kite’ bars. |
| 1898 Westm. Gaz. 8 Mar. 10/1 The German military authorities are experimenting with *kite-balloons. |
| 1682 Lond. Gaz. No. 1736/4 Stolen or Strayed.., two Mares, one of a *Kite-colour. 1702 Ibid. No. 3814/4 A large Sandy or Kite-colour Grey Gelding. |
| 1676 Ibid. No. 1092/4 A *Kite-coloured Roan Nag. |
| 1883 Cassell's Nat. Hist. III. 283 The *Kite Eagle is about thirty inches in length. |
| 1898 Westm. Gaz. 8 Mar. 10/1 *Kite experts, who..are building up an art..destined to be of the greatest utility to science and warfare. |
| 1922 Joyce Ulysses 537 Alone on deck,..yellow *kitefaced, his hand in his waistcoat opening, declaims. |
| 1684 Littleton Lat. Dict., The *Kite-fish, Milvus piscis. |
| 1578 Lyte Dodoens vi. lxx 748 The huskes or fruite thereof [the Ash] are called in shoppes Lingua anis, and Lingua passerina: in English, *Kytekayes. 1620 Venner Via Recta (1650) 136 Ash-keys, commonly called Kite-keys of the Ash. 1656 Bullokar Eng. Expos., Kitkaies, the fruit of the ashen tree. |
| 1901 Kipling Kim xiv. 365 From the edge of the sheep-pasture floated a shrill, *kite-like trill. 1909 Daily Graphic 26 July 10/1 When floating on an up-draught they [sc. the planes] will be expanded as a fan expands, and will present a larger kite-like surface. |
| 1828 Kaleidoscope 12 Aug. 48/2 There is no obstacle to interfere with the *kite-lines. 1876 ‘Mark Twain’ Tom Sawyer xxx. 304 He took a kite-line from his pocket. |
| 1926 M. Leinster Dew on Leaf v. 211 The *kite-makers were busy making fantastic objects in bamboo and paper. |
| 1928 E. Wallace Double v. 64 This was a favourite rendezvous of the swell mob, the ‘*kite’ men, the confidence artists. 1967 J. Phelan Nine Murderers & Me 162 Kite-man, one who passes forged cheques. |
| 1952 B.S.I. Monthly Information Sheet Oct. 16 (heading) The ‘*Kite’ mark on consumer goods. Ibid., In March, 1952, when the Utility schemes for textiles and clothing were brought to an end, most of the industries concerned undertook to co-operate with the B.S.I. in preparing voluntary standards..to ensure that at least the same levels of quality could be maintained. It was also agreed that wherever possible the B.S.I. ‘Kite’ mark would replace the former Utility mark as a guarantee to consumers that the goods bearing the mark were, in fact, ‘up to standard’. 1956 Observer 12 Feb. 6/4 It is hoped that eventually the B.S. Kite-Mark will certify the quality of many..consumer goods. 1957 Times 23 Sept. 11/4 The first fireguards bearing the kite mark of the British Standards Institution will be in the shops this autumn. 1957 Economist 12 Oct. 157/1 ‘Shoppers' Guide’ discusses articles against the measure of the BSI Kite-mark, which is a guarantee only of minimum satisfactory performance. 1958 B.S.I. News Nov. 3 Buyers, particularly large-scale purchasers, can do much to safeguard their workpeople from injury by insisting, wherever possible, that the safety equipment which they buy should be Kite-marked. Ibid. 17/1 We hear from Kirk and Company (Tubes) Ltd., that they have recently been granted a licence to Kite-mark their malleable cast iron and cast copper alloy pipe fittings under B.S. 1256. 1960 Ibid. Apr. 5/2 (heading) Kitemarking should be extended. 1966 New Scientist 12 May 338/3 The findings will be used by the British Standards Institution when it publishes the ‘rules’ for ‘kite-marked’ toothpastes later this year. 1971 Brit. Standards Yearbk. p. xvi, The British Standards Mark (known as the Kitemark) is a registered certification trade mark owned by BSI. Manufacturers may apply to BSI to use the mark on their products when their quality control arrangements are considered satisfactory and they have agreed to comply with a Scheme of Supervision and Control involving..inspection, sampling and testing. 1971 Daily Tel. 24 Nov. 11/5 The annual Civic Trust Awards,..emphasising architectural and design excellence in a total lived-in environment, have become sought-after kitemarks for planners..and architects. 1972 Ibid. 12 June 2/6 It will be illegal for shops to sell crash helmets which do not have the BSI's ‘kitemark’ seal of approval. 1972 Which? June 192 So far, no cabinets with mirrors have been given the Kitemark... If we hear of any Kitemarked cabinets, we will mention them. |
| 1897 Daily News 4 Nov. 6/4 A view of the City Hall, New York, with a portion of Lower Broadway and adjacent streets..what is called ‘a *kite photograph’. |
| 1828 Tytler Hist. Scot. (1864) I. 321 The *kite-shaped shield of the Normans. |
| 1841 Thoreau Jrnl. 6 Aug. in Writings (1906) VII. 266 Like pasteboards on a *kite string. 1971 N.Z. Listener 22 Mar. 13/1 Get seen around with a good woman on your kite-string and no-one bothers you regardless. |
| 1869 L. M. Alcott Little Women II. x. 150 The others are torn up to..bandage cut fingers, or make *kite-tails. 1896 Allbutt's Syst. Med. I. 439 For supporting the uterus and packing round the cervix several of these rolls are attached to the one string, forming the ‘kite-tail’ plug. |
| 1893 Outing (U.S.) XXII 97/2 A *kite track [for racing] consists of two stretches of one-third of a mile each, with a connecting curve of one-third of a mile. |
| 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts (1658) 570 One of them hath a back of a silver colour,..this is Ictinus canus, a gray *Kite-wolf. |
▪ II. kite, v. [f. prec. n.] 1. a. intr. To fly, soar, or move through the air, with a gliding motion like that of a kite; also,
fig. of a person. To move quickly, to rush; to rise quickly. Const.
around,
off,
up, etc.
colloq.| 1854 ‘O. Optic’ In Doors & Out (1876) 92 You did not use to be fond of ‘kiting’ round in this manner. 1863 Le Fanu Ho. by Churchyard II. 66 He has been ‘kiting’ all over the town. 1864 L. N. Boudrye Jrnl. 21 Aug. in Hist. Rec. Fifth N.Y. Cavalry (1865) 165 A well directed shell..sent them ‘kiting’ to the woods again. 1870 W. W. Fowler Ten Yrs. Wall St. 504 Would seem to be enough to start a panic, or send the market ‘kiting’ up among the tall figures. 1894 J. J. Astor Journ. other Worlds ii. iii. 145 Whenever a large mass seemed dangerously near the glass, they..sent it kiting among its fellows. 1908 Kipling Lett. to Family viii. 72 We have seen a financial panic..send whole army corps of aliens kiting back to the lands whose allegiance they forswore. 1931 Wodehouse Big Money viii. 181 The stock kited sixty points the first day. 1935 C. S. Forester Afr. Queen vi. 116 Bet they were surprised to see the old African Queen come kiting past. 1965 J. Potts Only Good Secretary i. 13 Yes, and her too, kiting off to Long Island when she ought to be here. |
b. trans. To cause to fly high like a paper kite.
| 1865 E. Burritt Walk Land's End 379 We pulled in our kited fancies soaring so high. 1868 Bushnell Serm. Liv. Subj. 62 We are going..to be kited or aerially floated no more. |
2. To terrify grouse or partridges by flying a paper kite, shaped like a hawk, over their haunts, so as to make them lie close till the guns come near.
| 1880 Daily News 1 Sept. 5/2 The practices known as driving and kiting. |
3. Commercial slang.
a. intr. To ‘fly a kite’: see
kite n. 4.
b. trans. To convert into a ‘kite’ or accommodation bill. Now usually, to write or cash a dud or temporarily unbacked cheque. Hence
ˈkiting vbl. n., the raising of money on credit; the passing of forged or unbacked cheques.
Cf. kite-flying vbl. n. 2.
| 1839 C. F. Briggs Adventures H. Franco II. iv. 35 He stuffed half a dozen blank checks into his hat, and said he must go out and kite it to save his credit. 1864 Webster, Kite, v.i. (Literally, to fly a kite.) To raise money, or sustain one's credit, by the use of mercantile paper which is fictitious. 1866 Congress. Globe 29 June 3482/1 Every kiting charter like this one—I speak of the National Telegraph Company. 1872 Ibid. 3 Apr. 2128/2 (Th.), They may hold the bonds, as has often been done in kiting corporations, and then take the property they have thus swindled the public out of. 1901 Dundee Advertiser 10 Jan. 6/2 It seemed..as if every one in London who had a six⁓pence to purchase a stamp had ‘kited’ paper with my signature forged to it. 1934 H. N. Rose Thesaurus of Slang iii. a. 21/1 Issue a check which hasn't sufficient backing: to kite. 1942 Berrey & Van den Bark Amer. Thes. Slang §556/1 Kiting, kite flying, extending credit or sustaining a balance in the bank by means of ‘kites’. 1950 H. E. Goldin Dict. Amer. Underworld Lingo 118/1 Kite, v. 1. To issue or pass, as a forged check or bond; (more accurately) to issue or pass a check against insufficient funds... Kite checks (New England States). 1. To issue forged checks. 2. To write checks, usually post-dated, against insufficient funds. 3. To raise illegally the face value of otherwise good checks. 1959 N. Mailer Advts. for Myself (1961) 438 Her ideas about..those investors with some credit rating whom an exurban bank, proud of its personal touch, might allow to kite a cheque for twenty-four hours..intrigued the banker. 1960 F. Gibney Operators vi. 158 Check kiting..is a different and more complex process than forging... Few up-and-coming businessmen..can claim to have resisted the temptation to write a pressing check just a day or two before some money is due, in the prayerful expectation that their deposit will get into the bank's ledgers before the check they have cashed comes home to roost. 1962 R. Cook Crust on its Uppers x. 90 We'll kite 'em at the airport! 1963 J. N. Harris Weird World Wes Beattie (1964) xv. 184 He was up to his ears in debt—always kiting checks before payday. 1969 ‘E. Lathen’ Murder to Go (1970) xvii. 173 If it had been a question of..kiting a cheque—well, that wouldn't surprise you at all. Clyde cut corners all his life. 1970 R. Lewis Wolf by Ears iii. 137 The technical terms..are ‘kiting’ and ‘lapping’. Money is transferred between two accounts, recording the receipt prior to the balancing date and the payment after the balancing date. That's ‘kiting’. |
c. To send a communication;
spec. to smuggle a letter into, out of, or within a prison. (
Cf. kite n. 4 b.)
| 1925 Flynn's 3 Jan. 665/2 Kite, to send a signal; to send a message. 1936 Detective Fiction Weekly 4 Jan. 116 A letter which I had ‘kited’ out of the prison. 1945 L. Shelly Jive Talk Dict. 13/2 Kite, to air mail or exchange. |
▪ III. kite obs. f. cut v.:
var. kyte, belly.