Both throw something heavy a long distance but what separates the two?
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The trebuchet is invented later, instead of winding a rope around a spindle (catapult) a trebuchet has a counter weight that is heavier than the thing your throwing.
The trebuchet uses gravity against the counter weight to give the thrown item momentum.
Finally the trebuchet has far greater range but has to be setup and disassembled if it has to move. A catapult can fire and move quicker.
Trebuchets use a counterweight to throw stuff and catapults use a spring mechanism. There are different mechanism designs for both but that’s the main difference.
Catapult is actually a generalized term that includes trebuchets, but we generally differentiate the two. It also includes ballistas (big ass crossbows)
When you think “Catapult” you are probably thinking of a [torsion catapult like an onager](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Onager_with_sling.png) where slightly stretchy ropes are twisted really tight around the throwing arm. The throwing arm is brought down which twists the ropes even more, and when its released as the twisted tension (torsion) in the ropes pushes the arm back upright with a lot of force.
The common [trebuchet](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b2/Trebuchet_Castelnaud.jpg/1280px-Trebuchet_Castelnaud.jpg) is gravity powered. It is a big tower with the projectile at one end of a long arm and a heavy counter weight at the other much shorter end. When released, gravity pulls the counter weight down and because the projectile is on a much longer arm it accelerates quickly and throws a heavy stone quite a distance. You can scale trebuchets up stupid high as long as the arm is strong enough and the tower is tall enough to let the counter weight fall. [Warwolf](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warwolf) was probably the biggest trebuchet and was probably 400 feet tall when fully assembled.
Imo a trebuchet is a variety of catapult, but a catapult is not a variety of trebuchet.
The mechanism is different like others pointed out but the purpose is the same.
A catapult is a Greek weapon frequently used frequently in medieval warfare.
A trebuchet never gets used because it’s handler surrenders before battle begins. (Bad French joke, sorry).
Catapult is moving stone throwing thingy and trebuchet is fixed standing stone throwing thingy.
The trebuchet is the superior siege engine, able to fire a 95kg projectile over 300 meters.
Imagine you have a plastic spoon and want to fling some food at at someone. You have a few options.
Hold the spoon at the handle end and then bend the scoop with your other hand, until you let go and the spoon springs back and launches your food. That would be similar to a catapult.
This time, take a rubber band and hold it stretched between two fingers. Slide the spoon handle into the gap inside the rubber band. Now rotate the spoon around and around so the rubber band starts to twist up tightly. Let go of the spoon and the unwinding rubber band will launch your food. This would be similar to an onager.
Now, take your food and place it directly into the rubber band and stretch it like a slingshot. This would be similar to a ballista.
Instead, get a pencil and lay your spoon across it to make a lever. Now drop a rock on the handle end to make the spoon launch your food. This would be similar to a trebuchet, although a real trebuchet is a bit more complicated. Rather than lying on the ground, the lever is held up in the air on a wooden frame, and rather than dropping a rock, the rock is just glued onto the handle of the spoon, with ropes holding the handle from dropping. You cut the rope to let the heavy end of the spoon fall.
Naturally, there are many other variations, so what I listed as a catapult might be called something else depending on how specific you want to be.
Imagine you want to launch something with a spoon.
A catapult would be: grab the handle of the spoon in one hand, and hold it so that the scoop part is upright. Use your other hand to pull back the top of the spoon, but try to keep the spoon upright with your first hand. When you release, the spoon should snap back into upright position. (If you’ve ever flung mashed potatoes at a sibling, you will be very familiar with this method.)
A trebuchet would be: set the spoon down on the counter, but put something under the handle so that the spoon can seesaw back and forth. Pick up a heavy object, and drop it on one side of the spoon.
The mechanics can get a lot more complicated, but that’s the fundamental difference. A catapult work with tension. A trebuchet works by dropping a heavy object.
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