Definition of pistol
1 : a handgun whose chamber is integral with the barrel; broadly : handgun
2 : a notably sharp, spirited, or energetic person
pistol
transitive verbFrom the M-W Editors
Examples of pistol in a Sentence
a real pistol, she dances rings around the other performers
Recent Examples of pistol from the Web
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A police report said authorities seized a Glock 23 pistol, a Bushmaster assault-style rifle and 90 rounds of ammunition from Moles’ vehicle.
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Several videos show the guards, many with pistols under their jackets, beating protesters.
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A police report said authorities seized a Glock 23 pistol, a Bushmaster assault-style rifle and 90 rounds of ammunition from Moles’ vehicle.
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The cemetery board will be funded by revenue from pistol permits that are already allotted to the Jefferson County legislative delegation.
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During a pat down of the subjects, police reportedly found two bags containing a small amount of marijuana; an assortment of devices for smoking marijuana and a small scale; and a pistol.
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One of the offenders, described as a black man age 19-21, had a black semiautomatic pistol, police said.
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Parents saw it and called the Sheriff’s Department about 5:45 p.m. Detectives contacted the boy and his parents and learned that the pistol was a BB gun, Cole said.
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In 1813, North received another contract for 20,000 pistols from the U.S. Military.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'pistol'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of pistol
Middle French pistole, from German, from Middle High German pischulle, from Czech píšt'ala, literally, pipe, fife; akin to Czech pištět to squeak
PISTOL Defined for English Language Learners
pistol
playDefinition of pistol for English Language Learners
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: a small gun made to be aimed and fired with one hand
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: a person who has a lot of energy and spirit
PISTOL Defined for Kids
pistol
playDefinition of pistol for Students
: a small gun made to be aimed and fired with one hand
Learn More about pistol
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See words that rhyme with pistol Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for pistol Spanish Central: Translation of pistol Nglish: Translation of pistol for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of pistol for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about pistol
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