Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A firearm designed to be held and fired with one hand.
- v. To shoot with such a handgun.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A firearm intended to be held in one hand when aimed and fired. It came into use early in the sixteenth century, perhaps as early as l500, for by 1520 it was common as a weapon of the reiters or German mercenary cavalry, who were called
pistoleers from its use. The early pistol was fitted with the wheel-lock, which was superseded by the flint-lock, and the latter by the percussion-lock. Pistols with more than one barrel have been in use from the introduction of the weapon, those with two having the barrels sometimes side by side, sometimes one over the other. The stock of the pistol has been made of many forms, the old cavalry pistol having it only slightly curved, so that it was held, when pointed at an object, by the right hand, with the lock uppermost, the barrel to the left, the trigger to the right. When accnrate aiming was required, as in dueling-pistols, the handle was made much more curved. Seerevolver . - To shoot with a pistol.
Wiktionary
- n. A handgun, typically with a chamber integrated in the barrel, a semi-automatic action and a box magazine.
- n. The mechanical component of a fuse in a bomb or torpedo responsible for firing the detonator.
- n. Shakespeare A creative and unpredictable jokester, a constant source of entertainment and surprises.
- n. southern US A small boy who is bright, alert and very active.
- n. American football A play formation in which the quarterback is a few feet behind the center when the ball is snapped, but closer than in a shotgun formation, with a running back a few feet behind him.
- v. transitive To shoot (at) a target with a pistol.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. 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. - v. To shoot with a pistol.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a firearm that is held and fired with one hand
Etymologies
- Probably from Middle French pistole, plausibly from German Pistole, from Czech píšťala ("firearm", literally "tube, pipe"), from pištěti ("to whistle"), of imitative origin, related to Russian пищаль (piščál’, "shepherd's pipe; harquebus"). Perhaps, however, from Middle English pistolet, from Middle French ("small firearm or small dagger"), which may be from Italian pistolese ("from Pistoia (a city in Tuscany)"). (Wiktionary)
- French pistole, from German, from Middle High German pischulle, from Czech píšt'ala, pipe, whistle, firearm, from pištěti, to whistle, of imitative origin. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“Still, a pistol is a little on the light side for a grizzly.”
“Looking for info on magazines and if this pistol is a clone of the Colt Off | Field & Stream”
“Looking for info on magazines and if this pistol is a clone of the Colt Officers”
“He told the crowd that he was originally inspired to write "Devil's Right Hand" - chorus: "Mama says a pistol is the devil's right hand!”
The Washington Post: In concert: Joan Baez and Steve Earle at The Music Center at Strathmore
“Looking for info on magazines and if this pistol is a clone of the Colt Off ive decided between either hornady, winchester silvertips, or barnes triple shock for elk. thanks for all the help guys, but which”
“Now when we are training the pups on pen raised birds, a fire from the pistol is the reward for the dog.”
“Looking for info on magazines and if this pistol is a clone of the Colt Off”
The Model 5 Bolt-Action Rifle is a Southpaw's Dream Come True
“Looking for info on magazines and if this pistol is a clone of the Colt Officers from folson on 02.07.10”
“The writer cannot say, "You know what I mean," when he mentions a laser handgun, even though he could simply use the word pistol in a western or detective story and the reader would instantly know what he meant.”
“But the doctors shake their heads at the word pistol-shot, though they refuse to explain themselves or to express any opinion till the wound has been probed.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘pistol’.
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medtech
terms found in documentation for implantable medical devices and IVD equip
distal, luer, stopcock, lumen, tortuosity, anneal, flouroscopy, radiopaque, distractor, toeing, tang, endoprosthesis and 173 more...
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Of Imitative Origin
Words formed in imitation of the sound of the things they signify.
bawl, biff, blizzard, blob, blooper, bob, boff, bomb, bonkers, boo, borborygmus, brouhaha and 148 more...
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SEDE - weapons
ammunition, anti-aircraft mac..., anti-vehicle mine, automatic machine..., ballistic missile..., bazooka, biological weapons, booby trap, bunker-busting bomb, chemical weapons, cluster bomb, light battleship and 218 more...
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gun
words for firearms (singular)
gun, chopper, rifle, pistol, shooter, pea shooter, cannon, glock, shotgun, gat, strap, revolver and 27 more...
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P is for Porch Dog
My P Words
paddington, paddy wagon, paddy whack, paddywhack, paisano, pandemonium, pantaloon, pantaloons, paper tiger, papoose, parachute pants, parcel and 109 more...
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Words I like
This is a list of my favourite words (phrases) in english, as a second language. I love them mostly because of how they sound and their meaning.
ninja, cookie, skill, zip, plentiful, digg, debris, pancake, cucumber, fetch, pot, backpack and 461 more...
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nighthawks at the diner
being words from Tom Waits songs.
vinyl, cigarette, rhinestone, naugahyde, margarine, vermouth, gin, platinum, wurlitzer, menthol, oldsmobile, asphalt and 90 more...
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Basic English Vocabulary
Very basic words for ESL students.
contemplate, container, consumer, consultant, consensus, conscious, conscience, connection, confusion, confront, conflict, confident and 4334 more...
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English words of Czech origin
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Just 'cause I like 'em, P
pellucid, pertain, pampas, prate, pinecone, philistine, pantocrator, papaverine, postmeridian, potlatch, pharology, pinniped and 622 more...
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Firearms
Nicknames for guns.
ratchet, cohete, chopper, gat, strap, long gun, auto, pistol, sidearm, slugthrower, kinetic weapon, revolver and 22 more...
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nicknames
titles or nicknames I will use when I'm an old man in a hat.
pontiac, turbo, cowboy, scout, chief, boss, peanut, sachem, hot-rod, peaches, ranger, pistol and 3 more...
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For Pete's Sake
or "A Rockery"
cottontail, rabbit, pumpkin eater, pistol, best, pete, saint, out, moss, parker, venkman, griffin and 6 more...
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My favorite words
basking, hybrid, air, bliss, sift, differential, pistol, hither, wistful, pensive, further, clouded and 9 more...
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lehcar90's list
Lush words that make speaking so desirable.
lantern, velvet, love, rose, satin, wedding, dish, candle, pistol, potion, masquerade, petal and 2 more...
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halo's Words
throat, shimmer, dusk, coil, fingertips, lush, skin, spine, collarbone, whisper, breathe, spill and 55 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for pistol.

rolig I just read that this word originates in the Slavic languages, which I hadn't realized. It came into English from German (Pistole), which took it from the Czech word pišt'ala, which means "whistle, flute, wind instrument" – cf. Russian пищаль / pishchal', Slovene piščal, Polish piszczel, piszczałka, all of which refer to a (potentially) musical wind instrument. The ultimate Slavic root is pisk- ("a whistling sound"), which may be related to the English word "pipe", both probably deriving from the onomatopoetic PIE root pi-. Jan 29, 2011
chained_bear I always think of
Pistol: "My name is Pistol call'd."
Henry: "It sorts well with your fierceness."
Shakespeare, (Henry V).
(I probably screwed that up.) Nov 18, 2007
tragedianxarrest I kind of like to say this word. Pistol. Pistol. Pistol. It just pops, you know? Nov 18, 2007