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- blunderbuss 1
blunderbuss
noun
blun·der·buss
ˈblən-dər-ˌbəs 
1
: a muzzle-loading firearm with a short barrel and flaring muzzle to facilitate loading
2
: a blundering person
Examples of blunderbuss in a Sentence
leave it to that blunderbuss to bungle a job that a child could do
Recent Examples on the Web
What the Supreme Court should not do is hand down a blunderbuss of a legal rule — one that could very well throw every public school in the country into turmoil — based on a half-baked legal theory constructed by lawyers who don’t even know if their clients’ rights were violated yet.
—
Ian Millhiser, Vox, 15 Apr. 2025
Now comes President Donald Trump with his blunderbuss actions that weaken or threaten to weaken the press across the board, perplexing us all who are paying attention.
—Chicago Tribune, 23 Mar. 2025
Cost cutting ‘blunderbuss’ DOGE is part of a long line of presidential efforts to take an ax to the administrative state.
—Zac Anderson, USA TODAY, 11 Feb. 2025
Colman is Edith Swan, a middle-aged church lady who still lives with her blunderbuss of a father (Timothy Spall) and mild-mannered mother (Gemma Jones) in a working-class neighborhood of Littlehampton.
—Ty Burr, Washington Post, 4 Apr. 2024
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Ian Millhiser, Vox, 15 Apr. 2025
Now comes President Donald Trump with his blunderbuss actions that weaken or threaten to weaken the press across the board, perplexing us all who are paying attention.
—Chicago Tribune, 23 Mar. 2025
Cost cutting ‘blunderbuss’ DOGE is part of a long line of presidential efforts to take an ax to the administrative state.
—Zac Anderson, USA TODAY, 11 Feb. 2025
Colman is Edith Swan, a middle-aged church lady who still lives with her blunderbuss of a father (Timothy Spall) and mild-mannered mother (Gemma Jones) in a working-class neighborhood of Littlehampton.
—Ty Burr, Washington Post, 4 Apr. 2024
See All Example Sentences for blunderbuss
Cite this Entry
“Blunderbuss.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blunderbuss. Accessed 2 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
blunderbuss
noun
blun·der·buss
ˈblən-dər-ˌbəs
: a muzzle-loader with a short barrel and cone-shaped muzzle to make loading easier
Etymology
derived from an obsolete Dutch word donderbus, literally, "thundergun"
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