[bluhn-der-buhs] 
| 1. | a short musket of wide bore with expanded muzzle to scatter shot, bullets, or slugs at close range. |
| 2. | an insensitive, blundering person. |
| blun·der·buss (blŭn'dər-bŭs') n.
[Alteration of Dutch donderbus : donder, thunder (from Middle Dutch doner; see (s)tenə- in Indo-European roots) + bus, gun (from Middle Dutch busse, tube, from Latin buxis, box; see box1).] |
blunderbuss
short, muzzle-loading shoulder weapon, usually a flintlock, with a wide smooth bore flared at the muzzle to a maximum width of about 4 inches (10 centimetres). The flaring was intended to scatter the shot at very close range, an effect that later scientific experiments showed did not occur. The blunderbuss, forerunner of the shotgun, was common in the 18th century, though in use somewhat earlier and later.
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dərˌbʌs