This page gathers the 365 dictionary entries belonging to the domain “Tools”, as labelled by Wiktionary. Each word leads to its full entry: definitions, etymology, pronunciation, examples. Page 4 of 4: from “smoothbore” to “zip gun”.
- smoothbore adj Having a bore with a smooth interior, i.e. one that has not been rifled.
- snap cap noun A dummy round of ammunition used to check ammo feed and other mechanical problems.
- snapshot noun A quick offhand shot, made without deliberately taking aim over the sights.
- snubnosed revolver noun A small, medium, or large frame revolver with a short barrel, generally less than four inches in length.
- sock noun Ellipsis of gun sock.
- soft point adj Of a bullet: having an exposed lead point, designed to expand when it hits its target and therefore cause more damage.
- softnose adj Of a bullet: lacking a jacketed nose and thereby deforming greatly on impact, causing a large amount of damage; soft-nosed.
- spanner noun A hand tool shaped like a small crank handle, for winding the spring of a wheel lock on a musket.
- speed loader noun A pressed metal (or plastic) clip, holding a set number of cartridges for a firearm, and used for rapid reloading of the weapon or its…
- sporter noun A firearm suitable for sporting use.
- squad automatic weapon noun A kind of light machine gun; a machine gun issued to a squad of troops, being heavier than the standard assault rifles, personal machine…
- squib noun A malfunction in which the fired projectile does not have enough force behind it to exit the barrel, and thus becomes stuck.
- stadia noun Hash marks or other reticle etchings on a riflescope's lens which are used for stadiametric rangefinding; lines or curves for estimating…
- stock noun The part of a rifle or shotgun that rests against the shooter's shoulder.
- stockpile noun A supply of nuclear weapons kept by a country; a nuclear stockpile.
- stovepipe verb Of a cartridge case, to become wedged vertically in the ejection port of a breechloading firearm, rather than ejecting completely from the…
- striker noun A mechanism of a firearm acting upon the firing pin.
- stripper noun A stripper clip.
- stylet noun A poniard or stiletto.
- subgauge adj Smaller in bore diameter than the standard gauge specified; most often describing a shotgun with a bore smaller than 12-gauge.
- survival weapon noun A firearm or other tool that is lightweight, reliable, and easy to carry or store, specifically chosen or designed to assist a person…
- switch noun Synonym of Glock switch.
- tactical adj Having a military appearance, typically with accessories such as a bipod, adjustable stock, detachable magazine or black coloration.
- tang noun The projecting part of the breech of a musket barrel, by which the barrel is secured to the stock.
- tanto noun A traditional Japanese small sword or knife; often used as a secondary weapon to a katana.
- tap noun A shot fired from a firearm.
- tap, rack, bang noun A technique for clearing a jam or misfire, consisting of applying pressure to the floor plate of the magazine to properly seat the…
- tape out verb To measure out (a piece of land) so as to be able to accurately fire upon it.
- TEC noun Ellipsis of TEC-9.
- tertiate verb To examine, as the thickness of the metal at the muzzle of a gun; or, in general, to examine the thickness of, as ordnance, in order to…
- terzetta noun An old Italian flintlock pistol.
- thermobaric weapon noun A weapon of a class of bombs, which causes a large explosion, with effects similar to a nuclear blast, by having an explosion, flash of…
- thirty-thirty noun A thirty calibre firearm designed for cartridges that originally held thirty grains of smokeless powder.
- Thompson noun Ellipsis of Thompson submachine gun (“Tommy gun”).
- Thor's hammer noun An orbital drop hypervelocity kinetic energy weapon (KEW). A theoretical weapon, originating from a U.S. government study, Project Thor…
- tige noun A steel pin in early rifles.
- timber noun The wooden stock of a rifle or shotgun.
- Tokarev noun A Soviet service pistol, the TT-33 and TT-30
- tracer ammunition noun Bullets or other projectiles which include a pyrotechnic component, allowing their path through the air to be seen.
- tracer round noun A type of ammunition that contains a pyrotechnic compound that ignites upon firing, creating a visible trail of light or smoke, allowing…
- traverse verb To rotate a gun around a vertical axis to bear upon a military target.
- trigger noun A finger-operated lever used to fire a gun.
- triple A noun Synonym of AAA (“anti-aircraft artillery”).
- trunnion noun One of the short stubby bearings on either side of a cannon; a pintle.
- try-miter square noun A joinery tool that can be used as a standard 90 degree try square and also as a 45 degree miter square.
- tweak verb From a catapult, to strike a target with a missile.
- undercharge verb To put too small a charge into.
- underhammer noun A firing mechanism where the hammer is mounted under the frame, behind the barrels, and forward of the trigger.
- underlug noun One of the locking lugs on a break-action firearm that extend from the bottom of the barrels under the chamber(s) and connect into the…
- unsight verb To lose sight on a target
- unsighted adj Not furnished with a sight.
- vane noun One of the metal guidance or stabilizing fins attached to the tail of a bomb or other missile.
- vent-piece noun In a breechloading firearm, a vertical sliding block with a conical plug on its front surface to seal the firing chamber and close the…
- ventometer noun An instrument for sighting a rifle.
- wadcutter noun a special-purpose bullet designed for shooting paper targets, usually at close range and at subsonic velocities.
- well-served adj (of a gun, artillery, etc.) Operated well.
- wheellock noun An early type of firearm, using a spring-driven wheel against a flint to make sparks in the firing pan.
- wildcat adj Of or concerning customized or hand-made cartridges.
- wildcatter noun A person who makes wildcat cartridges and the guns that use them.
- windage noun The difference in diameter between the bore of a firearm and the shot.
- wire cartridge noun An early type of shotgun cartridge that had wire lining in the case to assist concentrating the shot.
- wristguard noun A metal band between the stock and the receiver.
- yellow boy noun A Winchester Model 1866 lever action rifle.
- zero deflection noun The adjustment of a sight, exactly parallel to the axis of the bore of the gun to which it is attached.
- zip gun noun A crude homemade weapon that fires a projectile.