bolt-action
Americanadjective
Etymology
Origin of bolt-action
First recorded in 1870–75
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He also said Mr Robinson's father had suspected the weapon matched a bolt-action rifle that had once belonged to the suspect's grandfather.
From BBC • Sep. 16, 2025
Along with a bolt-action rifle that was abandoned in a wooded area, investigators also recovered ammunition that bore various markings, according to authorities.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 12, 2025
Inside a gun locker two feet from his bed, law enforcement officials found multiple weapons, including handguns, bolt-action rifles, shotguns, an AK-style high-capacity weapon and a gas mask.
From New York Times • Apr. 27, 2023
Basant Raj Thakur, a VDG from Jammu's Doda area, said that he supported the move to provide automatic weapons, replacing bolt-action rifles that some guards are currently armed with.
From Reuters • Jan. 12, 2023
The other was a .22 like mine, only bolt-action, and mine is a pump.
From "Z for Zachariah" by Robert C. O’Brien
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
