pistol

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   A lively, high-energy person.

   She was gregarious, opinionated, and in charge, the kind of person you'd describe as a real pistol, and I was immediately drawn to her.

2. 2
   noun

   a firearm that is held and fired with one hand

3. 3
   noun

   A handgun

4. 4
   noun

   The mechanical component of a fuse in a bomb or torpedo responsible for firing the detonator.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Pistol ultimately comes from Czech pišťala, meaning “whistle” or “pipe.” During the 15th-century Hussite Wars, the Czech word was applied to a type of gun with a clear-sounding shot; it then spread across Europe and entered English through French in the mid-16th century.

Probably from Middle French pistole, or via Middle English pistolet, from Middle French pistolet (“small firearm or small dagger”). The origin is unclear. If via German to Romance probably from Middle High German forms like pischulle from Czech píšťala (“firearm”, literally “tube, pipe”), from Proto-Slavic *piščalь, from *piskati, *piščati (“to squeak, whistle”), from Proto-Balto-Slavic *pīṣk-. Alternatively, if from Romance to German, from or related to Italian pistolese (“short dagger”), from Italian Pistoia (“a Tuscan town noted for its gunsmithing”).

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External links

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• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary