derringer

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of derringer One hundred and fifty-nine years ago, a 26-year-old white supremacist and Confederate sympathizer named John Wilkes Booth pointed a .44 caliber derringer pistol at the back of Abraham Lincoln’s head and squeezed the trigger. Brian Matthew Jordan, National Review, 14 Apr. 2024 This victim’s vision seems weird and fraudulent when Priscilla casually color-coordinates derringer pistols with designer dresses. Armond White, National Review, 3 Nov. 2023 As on the frontier, when predators never knew which woman might have a derringer in her petticoat, no one today knows when they will be recorded breaking the law. Sebastian Junger, National Review, 13 July 2023 In 1976, after wrecking his Rolls-Royce in a drunk-driving accident, he was arrested, intoxicated, with a loaded derringer on the grounds of Elvis Presley’s Graceland estate. Chris Morris, Variety, 28 Oct. 2022 Police found a silver derringer-style gun in his backpack at the time of his arrest. oregonlive, 21 June 2022 There's also a replica of the derringer pistol John Wilkes Booth used to assassinate Lincoln. Ariana Garcia, Chron, 13 May 2022 Wagrowski also testified that police found two guns -- a .22-caliber Kel-tec and a small derringer -- at the Crumbley home, aside from the one allegedly used in the shooting. Nadine El-Bawab, ABC News, 8 Feb. 2022 Police arrested a Sandusky man, 29, who was carrying a Ruger .45 caliber pistol with three magazines containing 22 rounds, along with a loaded High Standard derringer. Thomas Jewell, cleveland, 23 Jan. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for derringer
Noun
  • Authorities located the shooter’s vehicle nearby and subsequently discovered a rifle case, ammunition, magazines and a revolver – which was legally purchased on June 12 – stashed inside, Tisch said.
    Julia Bonavita , Ashley Papa, FOXNews.com, 30 July 2025
  • After finding out that Lee had won $114 at a greyhound track, Windom bought a .38-caliber revolver and ammunition.
    Jim Saunders, Sun Sentinel, 29 July 2025
Noun
  • They were then directed to a safe house where a pistol with a silencer was waiting for them.
    Sophie Tanno, CNN Money, 13 July 2025
  • On June 14, Naperville police allegedly found a 14-year-old carrying a loaded, semiautomatic pistol at a downtown takeover, authorities said.
    Tess Kenny, Chicago Tribune, 11 July 2025
Noun
  • The stabbing rampage that took place Saturday, July 26, left 11 people injured before onlookers, one of them apparently armed with a handgun, subdued the suspect in the parking lot outside the store just before police arrived, police said.
    Clara Hendrickson, Freep.com, 29 July 2025
  • The robbers, who were both reportedly armed with handguns, stole the victim’s cellphone, wristwatch and an undisclosed amount of cash before fleeing in a white 2017 Hyundai Elantra with the Connecticut license plate AZ09385, according to police.
    Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 28 July 2025
Noun
  • Its big selling feature is a revolver-like cylinder that spins and snicks along on precision bearings, just like the cylinder of a six-shooter.
    New Atlas, New Atlas, 11 June 2025
  • Richard’s odds are lousier than Reacher’s were when Beck forced Reacher to play because this revolver is a five-shot model instead of a six-shooter.
    Chris Klimek, Vulture, 13 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • So Lee would log on YouTube and search for sidearm pitchers.
    Cody Stavenhagen, The Athletic, 25 Feb. 2025
  • Either him or the sidearm guy from Alabama, Carson Ozmer.
    Mitch Light, New York Times, 15 June 2025
Noun
  • That’s about when Derrick Perry, the other Marine, pulled out his firearm as others screamed at Gille to drop the knife.
    Theresa Braine, New York Daily News, 27 July 2025
  • Investigators also learned Becton had pointed firearms at and threatened a previous girlfriend, according to the affidavit.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 25 July 2025
Noun
  • Local officers and highway patrol with what was apparently looked like guns drawn according to an eyewitness.
    Jenna Sundel Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 Aug. 2025
  • Mondal also told police his wife pointed a gun at him.
    Quinlan Bentley, The Enquirer, 1 Aug. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Derringer.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/derringer. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.

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