Spitfire
noun1
Historical A single-seat fighter used by the RAF and allies during World War II, especially during the Battle of Britain.
spitfire
nounalso spelled SpitfireEtymology Deverbal from spit fire.
1
A cannon.
2
Figuratively A person with a fiery temper, someone easily provoked to anger, especially a woman or girl.
- 1801, Peter Viereck, The Works of the Rev. Jonathan Swift, D.D., Dean of St. Patrick's, Dublin., Volume ⅩⅠⅠⅠ, by John Nichols (arranged by Thomas Sheridan), p. 143, published in London "―But however provoked, are your scribbling spitfires never to be satisfied?"
- The young imp had been prepared for immediate flight the instant anyone appeared, but for some reason Won Chou's not very aggressive behest must have conveyed a peculiarly galling insult for its effect was to transform the wary gamin into a bristling little spitfire, who hurled back the accumulated scandal of the quarter.1934, Ernest Bramah, The Bravo of London:
3
A larva of the spitfire sawfly, Perga affinis.