petard

[ pi-tahrd ]
/ pɪˈtɑrd /

noun

an explosive device formerly used in warfare to blow in a door or gate, form a breach in a wall, etc.
a kind of firecracker.
(initial capital letter) Also called Flying Dustbin. a British spigot mortar of World War II that fired a 40-pound (18 kg) finned bomb, designed to destroy pillboxes and other concrete obstacles.

Idioms for petard

    hoist by/with one's own petard, hurt, ruined, or destroyed by the very device or plot one had intended for another.

Origin of petard

1590–1600; < Middle French, equivalent to pet(er) to break wind (derivative of pet < Latin pēditum a breaking wind, orig. neuter of past participle of pēdere to break wind) + -ard -ard

British Dictionary definitions for hoist by one's own petard

petard
/ (pɪˈtɑːd) /

noun

(formerly) a device containing explosives used to breach a wall, doors, etc
hoist with one's own petard being the victim of one's own schemes
a type of explosive firework

Word Origin for petard

C16: from French: firework, from péter to break wind, from Latin pēdere

Cultural definitions for hoist by one's own petard

hoist by one's own petard
[ (pi-tahrd) ]

To be caught in one's own trap: “The swindler cheated himself out of most of his money, and his victims were satisfied to see him hoist by his own petard.” A “petard” was an explosive device used in medieval warfare. To be hoisted, or lifted, by a petard literally means to be blown up.