halfcocked
adjective
Idioms 1.
(of a firearm) at the position of half cock.
2.
lacking mature consideration or enough preparation; ill-considered or ill-prepared; half-baked.
3.
go off half-cocked, to act or happen prematurely: He went off half-cocked and told everyone the news. Also, go off at half cock.
Origin:
1800–10
1800–10
Dictionary.com Unabridged
verb (used with object)
to set the hammer of (a firearm) at half cock.
Origin:
1825–35
1825–35
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
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Link To halfcocked
00:10
Halfcocked
is always a great word to know.
So is interrobang. Does it mean:
| a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes. |
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
| half-cock | |
| —n | |
| 1. | on a single-action firearm, a halfway position in which the hammer can be set for safety; in this position the trigger is cocked by the hammer which cannot reach the primer to fire the weapon |
| 2. | go off at half-cock, go off half-cocked |
| a. to fail as a result of inadequate preparation or premature starting | |
| b. to act or function prematurely | |
| half-cocked | |
| —adj | |
| (of a firearm) at half-cock | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary
half-cocked definition
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Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
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