"act of flowing or shooting out; a darting or casting forth," c. 1600, of fluids; 1620s, of utterances and exclamations, from French jaculation, noun of action from jaculer, from Latin ejaculari "to throw out, shoot out," from ex "out" (see ex-) + iaculari "to throw, hurl, cast, dart," from iaculum "javelin, dart," from iacere "to throw" (from PIE root *ye- "to throw, impel").