pistol

[ pis-tl ]

noun

1. a short firearm intended to be held and fired with one hand.

verb (used with object)

, pis·toled, pis·tol·ing or (especially British) pis·tolled, pis·tol·ling.

1. to shoot with a pistol.

pistol

/ ˈpɪstəl /

noun

1. a short-barrelled handgun
2. hold a pistol to a person's head
   to threaten a person in order to force him to do what one wants

verb

1. tr to shoot with a pistol

Other Words From

• pistol·like adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of pistol¹

1560–70; < Middle French pistole < German, earlier pitschal, pitschole, petsole < Czech píšt’ala literally, pipe, fife, whistle (presumably a slang term for a type of light harquebus employed during the Hussite wars), akin to pištět to squeak, peep

Word History and Origins

Origin of pistol¹

C16: from French pistole, from German, from Czech pišt'ala pistol, pipe; related to Russian pischal shepherd's pipes

Example Sentences

In his call to authorities about the mosque, he claimed that he had an illegally modified AR-15, a Glock 17 pistol, pipe bombs and Molotov cocktails.

From Los Angeles Times

"Then he got this imitation pistol out. I thought, 'oh my god'. I couldn't speak. But he didn't deserve an IPP for that."

From BBC

But he says security personnel detained him, hit him on the head with a pistol and forced him to sign a document recanting his evidence.

From BBC

You are asking me to make a prediction and I don't know which gun I've got - a bazooka or a water pistol.

From BBC

A firearms expert told the court there was evidence of eight shots being fired from the same pistol on 5 December and that the gunshot fired through the front door in Vine Close had struck Ms Gordon in the head.

From BBC

Related Words

• firearm
• gun
• handgun
• rod