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Definition of pistol - 7 dictionary results
pis⋅tol
[pis-tl] 
noun, verb, -toled, -tol⋅ing or (especially British
) -tolled, -tol⋅ling.–noun
| 1. | a short firearm intended to be held and fired with one hand. |
–verb (used with object)
| 2. | to shoot with a pistol. |
Origin:
1560–70; < MF pistole < G, earlier pitschal, pitschole, petsole < Czech píšt’ala lit., pipe, fife, whistle (presumably a slang term for a type of light harquebus employed during the Hussite wars), akin to pištět to squeak, peep
1560–70; < MF pistole < G, earlier pitschal, pitschole, petsole < Czech píšt’ala lit., pipe, fife, whistle (presumably a slang term for a type of light harquebus employed during the Hussite wars), akin to pištět to squeak, peep
Related forms:
pis⋅tol⋅like, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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|
Link To pistol
| pis·tol (pĭs'təl) n. A firearm designed to be held and fired with one hand. tr.v. pis·toled, pis·tol·ing, pis·tols To shoot with such a handgun. [French pistole, from German, from Middle High German pischulle, from Czech píšt'ala, pipe, whistle, firearm, from pištěti, to whistle, of imitative origin.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Pistol
Pis"tol\, n. [F. pistole, pistolet, It. pistola; prob. from a form Pistola, for Pistoja, a town in Italy where pistols were first made. Cf. Pistole.] The smallest firearm used, intended to be fired from one hand, -- now of many patterns, and bearing a great variety of names. See Illust. of Revolver. Pistol carbine, a firearm with a removable but-piece, and thus capable of being used either as a pistol or a carbine. Pistol pipe (Metal.), a pipe in which the blast for a furnace is heated, resembling a pistol in form. Pistol shot. (a) The discharge of a pistol. (b) The distance to which a pistol can propel a ball.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : pistol
Spanish:
pistola,
German:
die Pistole,
Japanese:
ピストル
pistol
n. [IBM] A tool that makes it all too easy for you to shoot yourself in the foot. "Unix `rm *' makes such a nice pistol!"
Jargon File 4.2.0
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pistol
"small hand-held firearm," c.1570, from M.Fr. pistole "short firearm" (1566), of uncertain origin, sometimes said to be from Ger. Pistole, from Czech pis'tala "firearm," lit. "tube, pipe," from pisteti "to whistle," of imitative origin, related to Rus. pischal "shepherd's pipe." But earlier form pistolet (1550) is from M.Fr. pistolet "a small firearm," also "a small dagger," which may be the literal sense; though some connect this word with It. pistolese, in reference to Pistoia, town in Tuscany noted for gunsmithing. Pistol-whip is first recorded 1942.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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pistol
[IBM] A tool that makes it all too easy for you to shoot yourself in the foot. "Unix "rm *" makes such a nice pistol!"
[The Jargon File]
The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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