riflen.1
/ˈrʌɪfl/, U.S. /ˈraɪf(ə)l/ Now U.S. regional (north-eastern).† 2. A bent stick attached to the butt of a scythe, used for laying corn in rows. Obsolete.
1. A tool for whetting a scythe, usually made of wood coated with sand or emery. Also in figurative context. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > tools and implements > harvesting equipment > [noun] > reaping tools > scythe > tool or material for sharpening
rifle1459
stricklea1642
scythe-sand1686
rip1688
straik1844
1459 in H. E. Salter Registrum Cancelarii Oxoniensis (1932) II. 26 Willemus Robyns de Bottlee confessus est quod percussit quendam fratrem predicatorem cum uno Ryfle in capite.
1553 J. Withals Shorte Dict. f. 20/1 A ryfle to whet the sith with, lignum acuarium.
1606 Wily Beguilde 28 Nurse. Hear you: you with long rifle by your side... Peter. Call you this a rifle? its a good backe sword.
1606 W. Whately Redempt. of Time 15 All our sports and recreations..must bee to our body or minde; as the mowers whet-stone or rifle is to his syth, to sharpen it when it growes dull.
1829 Jrnl. Franklin Inst. 7 175 American patents... For an improved Rifle for sharpening Scythes and other edged tools... Emery of a suitable size is to be fixed upon properly shaped strips of wood [etc.].
1841 R. W. Emerson Ess. 1st Ser. (Boston ed.) vii. 189 The sound of a whetstone or mower's rifle.
1868 E. Kellogg Charlie Bell xvii. 253 The scythe rifles in those days were not made as at present, by putting sand or emery upon wood, with cement; but they scratched the wood and made it rough, then smeared it with tallow, and put fine sand on it, which adhered to the tallow and the scratches.
1883 Narragansett Hist. Reg. Apr. 312 The day for getting rifle sand..was the last Saturday of June.
1966 in Dict. Amer. Regional Eng. (2002) IV. 578/1 Rifle, wooden piece with something abrasive glued on two sides—used to whet a scythe.
1977 New Hampsh. Times 27 July 20/3 A whetstone, sometimes called a ‘rifle’, would give them [sc. blades] an even keener edge.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > tools and implements > harvesting equipment > [noun] > reaping tools > scythe > cradle
cradle1573
rifle1573
scythe-cradle1695
grain-cradle1824
crete1887
1573 T. Tusser Fiue Hundreth Points Good Husbandry (new ed.) f. 15v A brush sythe, & grasse syth, with rifle to stand, a cradle for barley.
1688 R. Holme Acad. Armory iii. 244/1 Bush Sythe, Grass Sythe, Rifle and Cradle.
1710 D. Hilman Tusser Redivivus Sept. 9 A Rifle or Rufle is no more than a bent Stick standing on the butt of [a] Sithe handle.
1854 A. E. Baker Gloss. Northants. Words II. 161 Rapstick..is more frequently called Rifle.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2010; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
† riflen.2
Obsolete.
1. A plundering, a sacking, a spoliation.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > spoliation or depredation > [noun] > instance of
spoilingc1380
reifc1405
depredation1495
riflea1500
spoliation1800
spoilurea1918
a1500 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Nero) iii. l. 793 Qwhil þe tyme þat þis Arbate Þis riffil [a1500 Adv. 19.2.3 ruffull, a1525 St. Andrews ruffil] made, and fra þat day Babilon was failȝeande ay.
2. Something which is taken by pillaging or plundering.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > stolen goods > [noun] > article of
stealth1426
rifle1657
steal1825
filching1834
cribbing1837
thieving1861
cribbage1862
rabbit1927
1657 T. Reeve God's Plea for Nineveh Ep. Ded. 11 Men enjoying preyes with as much inward satisfaction as birth-rights, and possessing rifles with as quiet a conscience as just earnings.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2010; most recently modified version published online December 2020).
riflen.3
/ˈrʌɪfl/, U.S. /ˈraɪf(ə)l/ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > device for discharging missiles > firearm > parts and fittings of firearms > [noun] > bore > rifled bore or rifling
rifle1746
rifle barrel1766
rifling1839
1746 tr. G. Le Blond Treat. Artillery ix. 62 The carabine has a much greater range than the fusil, or musket, because the riffle of the barrel impedes the ball.
a1751 B. Robins Math. Tracts (1761) I. 334 The metal of the barrel being soft,..its bore by half a year's use was sensibly enlarged; and consequently the depth of its rifles diminished.
1802 C. James New Mil. Dict. at Rifled gun The bullet ought to be no larger than to be just pressed by the rifles.
1859 Patents for Inventions: Abridgm. Specif. Fire-arms 46 [Cast-iron shot] coated with pure tin and iron, with a proper quantity of lead..to give way to the pressure of the rifles.
2.
a. Originally U.S. A type of gun, usually fired from shoulder level, having a long barrel with a spirally grooved bore, intended to make a bullet spin and thereby have greater accuracy over a long distance. Also: an artillery piece having a spirally grooved bore. Cf. earlier rifle gun n., shotgun n. 1a.The single barreled, muzzle-loading rifle was developed in the early 16th cent. for hunting and target shooting, but expense and the complexity of manufacture discouraged general military use until the 1850s. Double- and multi-barrel versions were developed for hunting. Breech-loading rifles using self-contained cartridges were in widespread use by the 1870s, as were repeaters by the 1880s and automatic rifles by the early 20th cent.Frequently with modifying word; for more established compounds, as air, assault, ejector, hunting, match, target rifle, etc., and Enfield, Lancaster, Martini–Henry, Mauser, Minié rifle, etc., see the first element.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > device for discharging missiles > firearm > small-arm > [noun] > rifle
rifle gun1685
rifle1756
rifle piece1780
rifle musket1841
rifle carbine1859
bundook1886
hipe1914
1756 J. Bartram in W. Darlington Memorials J. Bartram & H. Marshall (1849) 206 The Indians..commonly, now, shoot with rifles.
1772 D. Taitt Jrnl. 5 Apr. in N. D. Mereness Trav. Amer. Colonies (1916) 537 Others took the Cock off his riffle and Sixteen Carrots of Tobacco.
1775 J. Adams in J. Adams & A. Adams Familiar Lett. (1876) 65 They use a peculiar kind of musket, called a rifle.
1810 Duke of Wellington Dispatches (1838) VI. 16 Picton's rifles are for the Portuguese troops.
1846 W. Greener Sci. Gunnery (new ed.) 359 The addition of percussion to rifles also; that alone would have increased the accuracy of the old rifles.
1880 Encycl. Brit. XI. 281/2 Rifles for sporting purposes differ from military pieces in being double-barrelled.
1920 Z. Grey Man of Forest viii. 102 Then Helen saw that Roy had his rifle leveled. ‘Oh, don't!’ she cried... He lowered the rifle.
1939 Fortune Nov. 64/1 In 1914 the bulk of German troops entered the fighting equipped only with their field kits and bolt-action rifles.
1940 E. Hemingway For whom Bell Tolls xxi. 265 From the scabbard on the right of his saddle projected the stock and the long oblong clip of a short automatic rifle.
1969 H. Harrison Captive Universe 134 Chimal pried the laser rifle from his fingers and went out.
2003 Independent 29 Sept. 1/7 There are soldiers on Humvees on every road pointing rifles at the Iraqis they came to liberate.
b. Chiefly in plural. A soldier armed with a rifle; a rifleman. Frequently with capital initial in names of regiments.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > armed forces > the Army > branch of army > [noun] > rifles
rifle1853
society > armed hostility > warrior > armed man > [noun] > one armed with or using firearm > one bearing or using handgun > rifle > collectively
rifle1853
1810 European Mag. 58 67/2 His flight was accelerated by a previously concerted and extremely well executed movement of Lieut.-colonel Lowe, with the rifles of his corps, supported by a company of the 35th.
1843 W. C. Macready Diary 18 Sept. (1912) II. 222 He came back to introduce Mr Webster of the Rifles to me.
1853 J. H. Stocqueler Mil. Encycl. 233/2 In the British army there are two battalions of the rifle brigade and of the 60th rifles.
1860 J. Ruskin Let. 9 Mar. in Wks. (1905) XVIII. Introd. p. xxiv She's wholly wrong..about the Rifles—the only thing to save us from our accursed commerce.
1892 Daily News 15 July 5/5 Some 500 rifles, of which about 10 per cent. are sick.
1952 E. Waugh Men at Arms i. ii. 77 I got seconded to the African Rifles.
1971 S. Hill Strange Meeting iii. 200 The Rifles were still advancing.
1990 Field Jan. 92 The close-approach and shot over iron sights have been largely replaced by a more objective form of stalking, with the Rifle crawling into a position where a commanding view of the whole herd allows careful selection and a precise shot with a telescopic sight from a comfortable rest.
2004 Independent 22 Sept. 29/3 Commissioned in the 1/ 7th Gurkha Rifles, I had a spell of jungle bashing in Malaya.
c. A marksman (esp. a hunter) armed with a rifle. Cf. gun n. 5a.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > shooting > shooter > [noun]
gunner1753
gun1818
shootist1864
gunnist1894
rifle1933
society > armed hostility > warrior > soldier > soldier by branch of army > [noun] > rifleman
hunter1753
rifleman1764
shirtman1775
jäger1776
yager1804
bersagliere1862
shootist1864
rifle1933
1933 ‘H. Wade’ Policeman's Lot 266 At last there were the two figures—stalker and ‘rifle’—making their way slowly towards the glen where the stag still waited.
1977 D. Seaman Committee 9 He was aware that some famous rifles had missed completely at half that distance.
1988 Shooting Life June 63/1 Early season may find the rifle stalking his stag under a hot July sun, or on a still August day when he is eaten alive by midges.
Compounds
C1.
a. attributive and appositive, with the sense ‘cut with a set of rifles’ (sense 1), as rifle cannon, rifle carbine, rifle groove, rifle musket, rifle piece, rifle pistol, etc. See also rifle gun n.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > device for discharging missiles > firearm > small-arm > [noun] > rifle
rifle gun1685
rifle1756
rifle piece1780
rifle musket1841
rifle carbine1859
bundook1886
hipe1914
1780 J. Burgoyne Suppl. State Exped. from Canada 12 The enemy, convinced of this truth, place their dependence in entrenchments and rifle-pieces.
1820 W. Scoresby Acct. Arctic Regions II. 205 In other parts are receptacles,..occasionally for a rifle piece.
1841 Penny Cycl. XX. 11/2 By means of the rifle-grooves in the barrel.
1841 Penny Cycl. XX. 11/2 The number of spiral channels in a rifle-musket has varied at different times.
1859 Regulations for Musketry Instr. Army 93 The recruits are to be handed over for rifle-carbine training.
1861 E. Cowell Jrnl. 14 May in M. W. Disher Cowells in Amer. (1934) 347 The steamer, Pawnee was moored in front of the city, yesterday, with her guns (rifle cannon) and mortars so commanding it.
1876 G. B. Goode Classif. Coll. Illustr. Animal Resources U.S. 27 Rifle-muskets, Rifle-carbines.
1883 ‘M. Twain’ Life on Mississippi xxix. 317 I arose and drew an elegant rifle pistol on him.
1921 Navy Yearbk. 25 Two breech-loading rifle cannon of the larger calibers.
1982 G. McWhiney & P. D. Jamieson Attack & Die (1984) ii. v. 62 The new cavalry regiments were armed with sabers, rifle-carbines, and Colt's navy revolvers.
1997 C. Frazier Cold Mountain (2000) 56 He was deeply engaged in cleaning his fingernails with the nipple pick to a rifle musket.
b.
rifle-calibre n. and adj.
ΚΠ
1838 Mechanics' Mag. 6 Jan. 233/2 Bullets of the ordinary rifle calibre, of sixteen to thirty to the pound.
1900 Times 6 Mar. 15/2 Machine guns of rifle calibre had been numerous.
1940 War Illustr. 5 Jan. 554/2 The armament is believed to consist of two shell-firing guns as well as four rifle-calibre machine-guns.
1996 R. Cowley et al. Reader's Compan. to Mil. Hist. (2001) 3/2 By 1939–1940, British fighters carried as many as eight rifle-caliber machine guns.
C2.
a. attributive, with words denoting parts of, or articles connected with, a rifle (sense 2a), as rifle oil, rifle rag, rifle sling, etc.
ΚΠ
1844 W. A. Foster in M. A. Richardson Local Historian's Table Bk. Legendary Div. II. 259 From rifle sling, one clear sharp ring sped from behind a tree.
1894 G. I. Putnam On Offensive 115 Then there was the litter of camp, and its scents—the smell of cooking, of teams, of flannel clothing, of rifle oil, of the earth.
1915 A. Bleneau Nurse's Story vii. 97 The men use vaseline and empty jam-jars filled with lumps of ham fat and a rifle rag as an improvised stove, on which to make their tea.
a1918 W. Owen Coll. Poems (1963) 39 Knit in the webbing of the rifle-thong.
1989 P. Mayle Year in Provence (1990) 146 The stalls had stocked up for the season, and looked like small paramilitary depots: there were cartridge bandoliers and plaited leather rifle slings;..there were wilderness boots of the kind used by mercenaries parachuting into the Congo.
2005 Evening Gaz. (Middlesbrough) (Nexis) 24 Mar. 30 We also get a list every day from each company and it might ask for batteries, rifle oil, toilet rolls, loaves of bread or a partridge in a pear tree.
b.
rifle ammunition n.
ΚΠ
1808 Trial at Large Lt. Gen. Whitelocke App. 37 About 350 rounds per man of rifle ammunition.
1900 Times 28 Aug. 6/1 The Boers must have expended several hundreds of shells and many thousands of rounds of rifle ammunition.
1991 T. Pakenham Scramble for Afr. xxix. 533 Boxes and boxes of rifle ammunition for the Mousquiton-92.
rifle bullet n.
ΚΠ
1800 M. L. Weems Life G. Washington (ed. 2) 17 Instead of the cheering huzzas of joyful friends, he was saluted, on all hands, with the deadly whizzing of rifle-bullets.
1959 Bull. Atomic Scientists Mar. 141/2 A dot painted on the side of a rifle bullet describes a screw-shaped path.
1998 M. Perutz I wish I'd made you Angry Earlier 83 When we fired a rifle bullet into an upright block of pure ice two feet square and one foot thick, the block shattered.
rifle cartridge n.
ΚΠ
1814 J. G. Forbes Rep. Trial Brig. Gen. William Hull 81 Witness says that there was a large quantity of musket and rifle cartridges prepared.
1910 C. E. Mulford Hopalong Cassidy xxxiv. 349 Returning with the rifle he handed it to his friend and gazed longingly at the beltful of rifle cartridges.
2003 Field & Stream Oct. 85 Modern rifle cartridges shoot flat, and the really fast ones shoot uncannily flat.
rifle powder n.
ΚΠ
1779 G. Washington Let. in E. G. Lengel Papers G. Washington Revolutionary War Series (2010) XX. 607 The large demand on the ordnance department especially in the article of rifle powder.
1856 J. Boucher Treat. Rifle Projectiles 63 I intend to devote a chapter to the subject of rifle powder.
1941 Wall St. Jrnl. 15 Mar. 4/3 Cannon powders require no glazing, but rifle powders are glazed with graphite to make them flow freely.
2001 W. Keller Keller's Outdoor Survival Guide iii. 44 Black powder flashes explosively when ignited but rifle powder is a much slower burning powder, and consequently much safer to work with.
rifle scabbard n.
ΚΠ
1888 Rocky Mountain News (Denver) 5 Apr. 2/1 An empty rifle scabbard was on the saddle, but the gun could not be found.
1922 San Francisco Chron. 21 July 5/6 (advt.) Rifle scabbard $1.50. Slightly used U.S. Army leather gun Scabbards.
2001 W. Weaver Memory Boy (2003) vii. 102 Two of them [sc. four-wheelers]..were driven by larger guys; plastic rifle scabbards jutted from the rear.
rifle shell n.
ΚΠ
1831 United Service Jrnl. Apr. 520 Norton's rifle shell... Successful experiments had been made with a rifle shell.
1922 Forest & Stream Feb. 72/1 Such powders burn very efficiently in rifle shells having a large chamber space.
1990 M. Armstrong Agviq ii. 28 A profusion of recent .30–06 rifle shells.
rifle sight n.
ΚΠ
1832 A. Picken Canadas ii. 235 The gun was four feet three in the barrel, smooth, but with a rifle sight.
a1914 in Penguin Bk. Austral. Ballads (1964) 221 They had sought him over their rifle-sights.
2007 T. Perry Silence 291 Sylvie brought the rifle up,..then stared into the rifle sight.
rifle stock n.
ΚΠ
1811 National Intelligencer (Washington) 5 Dec. (advt.) Stock clasps, musquet stocks, rifle stocks.
1915 E. F. Wood Note-bk. Attaché App. 322 Although the fragments are small they fly with such force that they make fatal wounds and even cut into the wood of rifle stocks.
2009 New Yorker 23 Nov. 64/2 A new business: importing Chinese gun parts into the United States, mostly SKS rifle stocks and Makarov pistol accessories.
rifle trigger n.
ΚΠ
1823 J. F. Cooper Pioneers II. xi. 157 It's as easy, Miss, to pull a rifle-trigger on a magistrate as on a painter.
1909 Field & Stream Sept. 440/1 I got to fingering my rifle trigger impatiently and wishing that a wild Thanksgiving gobbler might blunder into view.
2001 W. Ferguson Generica xlix. 273 He mentally calculated the distance from Jack's whisky hand to the rifle trigger.
C3.
a. attributive, with words relating to the use of rifles (sense 2a), as rifle-match, rifle power, rifle training, etc.
ΚΠ
1859 Regulations for Musketry Instr. Army 7 The rifle training..is placed under the responsibility of the commanding officer.
1880 ‘M. Twain’ Tramp Abroad App. f 626 No information about prize fights.., rifle-matches, or other sporting matters.
1886 Pall Mall Gaz. 9 Dec. 10/1 Great Britain in its rifle power is represented to be in the most dangerous position.
1926 Slavonic Rev. 5 146 The enemy forces contained only a single German division, and as most of the Russian divisions were of 16 battalions the enemy was considerably weaker in rifle power.
1956 Pop. Sci. June 111/1 Infantry trainees..are participating in a new ‘no-dry-run’ experiment in rifle training.
2000 W. J. Vizzard Shots in Dark 194 Some forms of rifle competition require military-type arms to compete.
b.
rifle fire n.
ΚΠ
1779 J. Galloway Considerations upon Amer. Enq. 32 He advanced under the heaviest cannonade of artillery, grape shot, and rifle fire, I ever beheld.
1897 Daily News 25 Sept. 5/4 The enemy..opened rifle fire on the advanced guard.
1976 Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 13 Feb. 4/4 They opened up with automatic rifle fire.
2002 W. L. Fox Marine Rifleman (2003) viii. 220 Hearing what sounded like big angry bugs flying into a window, I realized that we were under rifle fire.
rifle gallery n.
ΚΠ
1839 Leigh's New Picture London (new ed.) xi. 343 Rifle-galleries. These are in every part of London, and are much frequented.
1880 ‘E. Leathes’ Actor Abroad xiv. 165 Beneath the building, scooped out of the cliff, are a bowling-alley and a rifle-gallery.
1936 Times 22 Dec. 9/7 A considerable area of the deck of Eastbourne pier was damaged last night by fire, which the watchman discovered under the rifle gallery half-way along the pier.
2005 J. Aitken C. Colson vi. 110 The shooting competition took place on shore at a rifle gallery in Marshall Hall Park.
rifle ground n.
ΚΠ
1837 New London Mag. 198 The young men practice in the rifle-ground.
1904 tr. F. Seeber Great Argentina xviii. 96 As regards rifle-grounds,..Argentina is much behind Switzerland.
2006 T. Raatan Hist., Relig. & Culture N.E. India iv. 114 The temple is situated in Imphal town in the first Manipur Rifle Ground.
rifle practice n.
ΚΠ
1823 Morning Chron. 10 Oct. (heading) Military Rifle Practice.
1967 T. Wilder Eighth Day v. 376 The accused calmly testified that he had assumed that he had been invited to the customary Sunday-afternoon rifle practice.
2009 Toronto Star (Nexis) 17 Feb. a1 At 7:30, after rifle practice, they had a breakfast of lentils.
C4.
a. attributive, with the sense ‘using or armed with rifles’, as rifle artillery, rifle association, rifle brigade, rifle club, rifle team, etc.
ΚΠ
1820 Army List Jan. 42 Rifle Brigade.
1841 Penny Cycl. XX. 12/2 In 1816 it was formed into the present rifle-brigade.
1852 C. Patmore in Mem. & Corr. (1900) II. 176 My whole time is now absorbed in the business of a Rifle Club.
1861 Ld. Palmerston Let. 30 Dec. in Ld. Cowley Paris Embassy during Second Empire (1928) xi. 234 They still attack in columns which would be blown to pieces by the French rifle artillery long before they could come into contact with their opponents.
1876 G. E. Voyle & G. de Saint-Clair-Stevenson Mil. Dict. (ed. 3) 456/2 Nearly every county..forming a rifle association.
1900 R. Kipling Let. 24 July in C. E. Carrington Rudyard Kipling (1955) xiii. 315 We've started a rifle-club in the village... We've got a 1,000 yards range among the downs.
1967 N. Mailer Why are we in Vietnam? v. 87 He'd always gone in for handloading his cartridges, but when he got back, he was abruptly become the cartridge expert in his rifle club.
2001 Times 8 June 25/2 A distinguished rifle shot, he captained the Great Britain rifle team and represented Scotland for fifty years.
b.
rifle battalion n.
ΚΠ
1775 Jrnls. Continental Congr. 1774–89 (Libr. of Congr.) (1905) III. 305 To John Biddle,..Commissary of the riffle Battalion.
1881 Rep. Comm. on Formation of Territorial Regim. 8 There would, under normal circumstances, be six Rifle battalions at home.
1977 J. H. Parks J. E. Brown of Georgia 155 The rifle battalion and cavalry would be formed into a legion.
2006 R. Young For Love & Liberty viii. 206 The state also sent artillery and a rifle battalion.
rifle company n.
ΚΠ
1775 Jrnls. Continental Congr. 1774–89. (Libr. of Congr.) (1905) II. 250 The expences incurred for raising and arming the riffle companies.
1848 H. H. Wilson Hist. Brit. India 1805–35 III. iii. 109 The Rifle Company of the Mug levy.
1938 ‘I. Hay’ King's Service xiv. 245 The number of platoons in a rifle company has been reduced from four to three.
2004 D. Maraniss They marched into Sunlight ix. 141 It was the first day of the second week of training for his new rifle company, and he was exuberant about the budding esprit de corps.
rifle corps n.
ΚΠ
1777 J. Thacher Mil. Jrnl. (1823) 121 The gallant Colonel Morgan, at the head of his famous rifle corps..commenced the action.
1830 Army List Jan. 37 The Duke of York's own Rifle Corps.
1920 H. Thompson et al. Bk. Hist. XVII. 833/2 The tea-planters of Ceylon came to Egypt as a rifle corps.
2006 K. Navikas in M. Philp Resisting Napoleon iii. 62 Hanson led the Manchester, Salford and Stockport Independent Rifle Corps.
rifle platoon n.
ΚΠ
1844 J. Gregg Commerce of Prairies I. v. 89 The roar of our artillery and rifle platoons resounded from every hill.
1919 Atlanta Constit. 28 Sept. 3/7 Colonel Herman Glade and a crack rifle platoon of the Forty-fifth infantry.
2008 G. L. Rottman World War II Infantry Assault Tactics 3 The close assault of an enemy-occupied objective is the central job of the rifle platoon.
rifle regiment n.
ΚΠ
1776 Battle of Brooklyn i. 8 Know, then, that the Marylanders, Pennsylvanians, and the rifle regiments, are mostly composed of Europeans ; a great majority of which are Irish and Germans.
1849–50 Army List 331 Royal Canadian Rifle regiment.
1921 H. K. Leiding Hist. Houses S. Carolina vi. 117 Maham was a captain in the first rifle regiment.
2008 Courier Mail (Austral.) (Nexis) 15 Jan. 32 Wellington's rifle regiments facing regiments of French crapauds were better off with their guns than the muskets the French insisted on using.
rifle troop n.
ΚΠ
1801 Morning Chron. 11 Mar. The rifle troops, commanded by Colonel Manningham, are on board Lord Nelson's ship the St. George.
1919 W. C. Scott Course in Machine Guns 164 This assignment of platoons to the support of the assaulting troops..does not imply a transfer of command over such platoons to the rifle-troop commanders.
2001 Navy News Sept. 3/1 They are crewed by three Royal Marines and can carry a Royal Marines rifle troop of 35 men or two light trucks.
C5. Parasynthetic.
rifle-grooved adj.
ΚΠ
1844 Mechanics' Mag. 24 Aug. 118 The Colonel's shell is cylindrical,..and rifle-grooved on the outside.
1977 ‘J. Gash’ Judas Pair ii. 27 [Duelling pistols] should have walnut stocks, and usually be rifle-grooved.
C6.
a. Instrumental and objective, as rifle-firing, rifle-shooter, rifle twirling; rifle-carrier, etc.
ΚΠ
1796 Universal Politician Sept. 215 Adjutant General Sornet..attacked the enemy by rifle firing.
1841 Penny Cycl. XX. 12/2 Rifle-firing in extended order is performed by sound of bugle.
1864 J. H. Burton Scot Abroad I. 167 Some Brummagem rifle-manufacturer about the period of the American War.
1886 P. Robinson Valley Teetotum Trees 54 A multitude of rifle-carriers among the subordinates in public services.
1895 J. G. Millais Breath from Veldt ii. 18 A rifle-shooter going out by himself into the Karroo.
1901 Times 31 Jan. 6/5 At Vaal we stopped on hearing the sound of heavy rifle-firing.
1974 Ridge Citizen (Johnston, S. Carolina) 18 Apr. 1/6 Her special training while in school consists of several years of rifle twirling while a member of the Thurmond Color Guard.
1997 Record (Bergen County, New Jersey) (Nexis) 26 May h03 A rifle-carrier in the 9th Division, private Billy fought first in North Africa and then Sicily.
b.
rifle shooting n.
ΚΠ
1783 Ann. Reg. 1781 i. Hist. Europe 52/2 He was perhaps the best marksman living; and probably brought the art of rifle shooting to its highest point of perfection.
1836 J. Murray Hand-bk. for Travellers on Continent 274/1 The amusements of the theatre, or gaming table, or rifle shooting.
1981 E. North Dames xiv. 268 There was a rifle range nearby and Major Frimley taught rifle shooting to the girls.
2008 K. Jensen Mobilizing Minerva iii. 55 Thirty-five women students practiced rifle shooting for an hour each day under the direction of Mrs. Jacob Maier.
c.
rifle-toting adj.
ΚΠ
1923 Baking Technol. Nov. 344/2 Damned, lawless, rifle-toting, pistol-shooting Americans who had just wrested Texas from Mexico.
1967 Pacific Stars & Stripes (Tokyo) 5 Nov. 7/3 Visitors to Pleiku's number one museum are greeted by Charlie Zipperhead, a rifle-toting North Vietnamese dummy.
2007 Opera Now Mar. 79/2 Rifle-toting riot police stood guard in the lobby.
C7. † rifle leggings n. Obsolete leggings similar to those worn by riflemen.
rifle ball n. (a) a ball (ball n.1 7) used as ammunition for a rifle; (b) an item of confectionery resembling this.
ΚΠ
1777 M. Willett Let. Aug. in Remembrancer (1778) 5 448/2 All the damage was, one man killed by a rifle ball.
1816 Ld. Byron Childe Harold: Canto III Notes 71 General Marceau (killed by a rifle-ball).
1884 Pall Mall Gaz. 24 July 22/1 The large round pan..is chiefly employed in the manufacture of carraway ‘comfits’, otherwise ‘prickly balls’ or ‘rifle balls’.
1999 L. Mason Sweets & Sweet Shops 28 Cheap and colourful sweets were constantly re-inventing themselves in new forms. Panning produced rifle balls and seaside pebbles.
2008 Anniston (Alabama) Star (Nexis) 9 Nov. We found rifle balls and gun flints.
rifle barrel n. †(a) a barrel marked with rifles (sense 1) (obsolete); (b) the barrel of a rifle (sense 2a).Recorded earliest in attributive use.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > device for discharging missiles > firearm > parts and fittings of firearms > [noun] > barrel > types of
pistol barrel1663
rifle barrel1766
stub-barrel1833
twist barrel1833
stub1853
full choke1876
society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > device for discharging missiles > firearm > parts and fittings of firearms > [noun] > bore > rifled bore or rifling
rifle1746
rifle barrel1766
rifling1839
1766 Humble Pet. Denys Rolle 41 Such Danger attends the Use of these rifle-barrel Guns.
1797 Encycl. Brit. VIII. 220/2 The reasons commonly alleged for the superiority of rifle-barrels over common ones.
1839 A. Ure Dict. Arts 472 Rifle barrels have parallel grooves of a square or angular form cut within them.
1896 W. W. Greener Gun & its Devel. (ed. 6) xxiii. 564 Flip is a term used to denote the lateral deflection of a rifle barrel due to the same or similar causes as the vertical deflection termed ‘jump’.
1990 Amer. Rifleman Feb. 57/1 For pistol barrels three O-rings, evenly spaced, are recommended, and four are used in rifle barrels.
rifle-barrelled adj. (of a firearm) having barrels marked with rifles (sense 1).
ΚΠ
1754 Abstr. Case James Annesley 62 The persons charged with the execution of that commission, were for that very end furnished by Lord Anglesey with his own rifle-barrel'd gun, which which he used to kill deer.
1853 N. Amer Rev. Oct. 292 We suspect Burr's pistols were rifle-barrelled.
1902 E. E. Dye Conquest xvi. 61 He used his rifle-barrelled firelock as he used his hands.
2003 Guardian (Nexis) 28 Mar. 6 The Challenger 2 is equipped with a 120mm rifle barrelled gun.
rifle bench n. (a) a bench used in making rifle barrels; (b) a bench used in rifle shooting.
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1814 Sporting Mag. 44 62 The rifle-bench which gunmakers use.
1998 Boston Globe (Nexis) 22 Mar. f1 He likes to target practice, and has a rifle bench set up on his property.
rifle bolt n. (a) = bolt n.1 3 (now chiefly historical); (b) = bolt n.1 7b.
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society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > device for discharging missiles > firearm > parts and fittings of firearms > [noun] > breech > bolt
rifle bolt1849
bolt1859
society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > missile > ammunition for firearms > [noun] > bullet or shell > bullet > types of bullet
pistol bullet?1591
musket bullet1598
musket ball1637
silver bullet1648
three-o(h)-three1683
pistol ball1689
musket shot1755
Biscayen1812
picket1848
rifle bolt1849
Minié ball1851
Minié1852
expanding bullet1859
navy bullet1873
two-two1895
dum-dum1897
Lee-Enfield bullet1899
rubber bullet1900
full-metal-jacket1913
round-nose1932
thirty-two1942
plastic bullet1945
baton round1968
1849 H. H. Breen Diamond Rock 82 A rifle-bolt, a cannon-shot; Sabre on sabre madly rushing.
1890 Times 13 Nov. 8/1 While there is no pressure on the end of a door-bolt, the end of the rifle-bolt has to stand a severe and sudden blow every time the rifle is fired.
1994 S. R. Wise Gates of Hell i. 6 A 12-pound rifle bolt, fired from a 3.5 inch Blakely rifled cannon,..slammed into Sumter's gorge wall.
2009 C. Cussler & J. Du Brul Corsair 395 The rifle bolt snapped back on an empty magazine.
rifle butt n. the butt of a rifle.
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society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > device for discharging missiles > firearm > parts and fittings of firearms > [noun] > stock or shaft > parts of
shaft1626
side plate1680
pistol hand1702
club1720
heel plate1753
break-off1804
shoulder-butt1810
pistol-butt1814
rifle butt1826
pistol grip1841
nose cap1844
trap1844
trap-plate1844
receiver1851
bump1852
furniture1852
bend1859
comb1867
fore-end1881
furniture-pin1881
grip1881
1826 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. 20 658/2 As soon as she is dispatched by blows from the rifle-butt, the shepherd stretches out his foe's carcase on the sward, eight feet from wing to wing.
1918 Times 13 Nov. 7/5 A girl had had her shoulder bruised with a rifle butt for trying to give food.
1998 R. Stone Damascus Gate iii. lxix. 474 Some soldiers had seen him, and a flying squad from the police lines set out, using batons and rifle butts as deemed necessary to rescue him.
rifle-butt v. transitive to strike forcefully with the butt of a rifle.
ΚΠ
1957 Evening Independent (Massillon, Ohio) 26 Sept. 12/3 (caption) C. W. Blake..was rifle-butted to the ground in a tussle with a paratrooper.
1977 Rolling Stone 16 June 36/1 There's just this part of him that's seven feet tall, big as a house, and wants to rifle-butt everybody around.
2003 A. Swofford Jarhead 31 Burke..grabbed a recruit's rifle and rifle-butted him in the chest.
rifle butts n. a pair of mounds in front of which targets are placed, used for practising shooting with a rifle; the area covered by this.
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1851 Littell's Living Age 13 Sept. 481/1 The rifle-butts were pitched on the opposite side of the torrent, with a small hut close to them to shelter the marker.
1922 W. B. Maxwell Spinster of this Parish vi. 105 I never had any lessons at the rifle-butts—with a marker and a flag.
2005 R. E. P. Totten Button Box ii. vi. 89 Mr. Patton had been standing on the rifle butts all morning.
rifle coat n. U.S. (now historical) = rifle frock n.
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the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > clothing for body or trunk (and limbs) > [noun] > coat > types of > close-fitting
juste-au-corps1656
tunic1667
chesticore1671
Newmarket coat1751
rifle shirt1775
rifle frock1776
jeistiecor1817
rifle coatc1827
Newmarket1843
c1827 in Ohio Arch. & Hist. Q. 25 (1916) 96 1 Frock or rifle coat of domestic woolen cloth... $12 00.
1877 Rep. Indian Affairs (U.S.) 5 The coats to be in shape like the old fringed rifle-coat or blouse.
2001 J. Kochan & D. Rickman U.S. Army 1783–1811 41/1 This conjectural reconstruction of the rifle coat is drawn on the above and other period military garments that seem in keeping with this description.
rifle frock n. U.S. (now historical) a fringed tunic typically worn by huntsmen and officers of early rifle regiments.
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the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > clothing for body or trunk (and limbs) > [noun] > coat > types of > close-fitting
juste-au-corps1656
tunic1667
chesticore1671
Newmarket coat1751
rifle shirt1775
rifle frock1776
jeistiecor1817
rifle coatc1827
Newmarket1843
1776 Battle of Brooklyn ii. iii Rifle guns and rifle frocks, will be as cheap in their camp tomorrow, as cods heads in New Foundland.
1811 Weekly Reg. (Baltimore) 1 45/2 In this valuable class of cotton goods are included rifle-frocks.
1907 R. W. Chambers Reckoning 232 Ladies of Albany, if you but knew the wealth of harmless frolic cages in the heart that beats beneath a humble rifle-frock!
2006 C. Frazier Thirteen Moons 92 His hunting costume carried about it the air of the antique. The hem of his rifle frock fell nearly to his knees.
rifle frolic n. a contest consisting of shooting at targets using rifles.
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1775 S. Haws Jrnl. 13 Oct. in A. Tomlinson Mil. Jrnls. Two Private Soldiers (1855) 77 We had a rifle frolick. [Note] Shooting at a mark, for liquor.
1943 C. Richter Free Man xii. 113 Then it was time for the rifle frolic.
2007 C. P. Neimeyer Revol. War v. 138 Rifle frolics or marksmanship contests were organized.
rifle green adj. and n. (a) n. a dark olive green colour, as found on the uniforms of many early British rifle regiments; (b) adj. of this shade of green.
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the world > matter > colour > named colours > green or greenness > [adjective] > dark green
steel-greena1560
bottle-green1785
corbeau1810
forest-green1810
rifle green1829
spinach-green1845
pine green1892
army green1897
malachite1900
seaweed-green1937
the world > matter > colour > named colours > green or greenness > [noun] > shade or tint of green > dark green
steel-greena1560
moss green1705
bottle1784
corbeau1810
forest-green1810
rifle green1829
spinach-green1845
hunter's green1872
moss1897
army green1908
jungle green1946
loden1964
1829 Belfast News-Let. 22 May (advt.) Cloths of the very finest West of England Manufacture,..In the shades of Brown, Olive, Black,..Rifle Green.
1830 Sporting Mag. July 202/2 He sported a black velvet cap, much out of keeping, and a rifle-green or black coat.
1840 W. M. Thackeray in Fraser's Mag. July 117/2 So many masses of rifle-green trees plunged into the deepest shadow.
1891 ‘J. S. Winter’ Mrs. Bob 46 Gown of dark green cloth—rifle green I believe they call it.
1990 A. Beevor Inside Brit. Army xvii. 189 The paramilitary nature of the force lies in its origins in the Royal Irish Constabulary, which adopted the rifle green of the Light Infantry who trained them.
2007 N. Devon Jrnl. (Nexis) 15 Feb. 31 The cadets will be issued with the Rifle green berets.
rifle grenade n. a grenade discharged from a rifle.
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society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > missile > [noun] > grenade
trombe1562
grenade1591
grenado1611
granata1637
hand grenade1637
bag-granado1638
shell1647
glass-grenade1664
globe1672
flask1769
petrol bomb1903
rifle grenade1909
hairbrush1916
Mills1916
pineapple bomb1916
stick grenade1917
fragmentation bomb1918
pineapple1918
potato-masher grenade1925
spitball1925
Molotov cocktail1940
sticky bomb1940
stick-bomb1941
red devila1944
stun grenade1977
flash-bang1982
1909 Times 8 Apr. 8/2 We recently gave a description of the Hale Rifle Grenade. The utility of this invention has now been enhanced by a new device which permits the tail rod to be instantly unshipped and replaced by a flexible rope tail, which thus converts the grenade into a hand bomb.
1928 C. F. S. Gamble Story N. Sea Air Station v. 87 It was also intended that the Marten Hale rifle-grenade should be issued for use from aircraft.
1991 J. Quillen Alcatraz from Inside xx. 115 We heard the now all too familiar pop, followed by the explosion of a rifle grenade in the window.
ΚΠ
1862 Internat. Exhib.: Illustr. Catal. Industr. Dept. II. xxvii. §4987 Boots,..rifle leggings, lasts, and boot trees.
rifle microphone n. originally U.S. = shotgun microphone n. at shotgun n. Compounds 2 (also called gun microphone).
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > audibility > sound magnification or reproduction > [noun] > microphone
carbon transmitter1878
microphone1878
carbon microphone1879
pantelephone1881
phonoscope1890
mike1911
condenser microphone1921
magnetophone1922
radio microphone1922
ionophone1924
crystal microphone1925
ribbon microphone1925
radio mike1926
laryngophone1927
velocity microphone1931
ribbon mike1933
pressure microphone1934
bug1936
eight ball1937
ribbon1937
throat microphone1937
throat mike1937
rifle microphone1938
parabolic microphone1939
lip microphone1941
intercept1942
spike mike1950
spy-mike1955
spy-microphone1960
mic1961
rifle mike1961
gun microphone1962
spike microphone1962
shotgun microphone1968
Lavallière1972
wire1973
sneaky1974
multi-mikes1990
1938 Los Angeles Times 6 Feb. iii. 1/7 The new rifle microphone..is a microphone with a long barrel which sits on a tripod. With it the voice of any individual can be picked out of a crowd when the nose of the barrel is pointed toward that person.
1962 A. Nisbett Technique Sound Studio 255 Gun microphone (Am.: Rifle Microphone), moving coil microphone with a battery of tubes of different lengths leading out along the axis.
2005 Independent 25 Apr. 40/1 Yes, there it is, over the hedge—the welcome sight of the hooded head of a rifle microphone. Those familiar summer visitors, a crew from the BBC wildlife unit, have arrived!
rifle mike n. U.S. colloquial = rifle microphone n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > audibility > sound magnification or reproduction > [noun] > microphone
carbon transmitter1878
microphone1878
carbon microphone1879
pantelephone1881
phonoscope1890
mike1911
condenser microphone1921
magnetophone1922
radio microphone1922
ionophone1924
crystal microphone1925
ribbon microphone1925
radio mike1926
laryngophone1927
velocity microphone1931
ribbon mike1933
pressure microphone1934
bug1936
eight ball1937
ribbon1937
throat microphone1937
throat mike1937
rifle microphone1938
parabolic microphone1939
lip microphone1941
intercept1942
spike mike1950
spy-mike1955
spy-microphone1960
mic1961
rifle mike1961
gun microphone1962
spike microphone1962
shotgun microphone1968
Lavallière1972
wire1973
sneaky1974
multi-mikes1990
1961 Broadcasting 30 Jan. 52/2 These rifle-like mikes aimed at questioners proved to be highly directional and efficient.]
1961 Broadcasting 13 Feb. 52/1 ABC used supersensitive tv cameras to pick up the proceedings, along with two rifle mikes that catch questions from reporters.
1973 Observer 14 July 30/1 It is his rifle-mikes we see peeping from the rooftops in the opening sequence, and his headphoned technicians operating them.
2003 P. Reizin Don't try this at Home iii. 70 Phelps sounds clear as a bell, thanks to the rifle-mike pointing at him through the spine of Howard's ring-file.
rifle pit n. an excavation made to give cover to riflemen in firing at an enemy.
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society > armed hostility > defence > defensive work(s) > shelter or screen > [noun] > pits
rifle pit1856
shelter-pit1870
gun-pit1877
1856 Ann. Reg. 1855 i. 231/2 These ‘rifle-pits’, became a source of great annoyance to the French.
1885 Manch. Examiner 12 May 5/2 The insurgents were also compelled to evacuate some rifle pits.
1987 A. D. Hux & F. E. Jarma Canada v. 55 Jim..admired Dumont's defence of Batoche, the Métis headquarters. Rifle pits had been dug all around Batoche. They were about four feet deep and had given cover to the Métis sharpshooters.
riflescope n. U.S. a telescopic rifle sight.
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society > armed hostility > military equipment > weapon > device for discharging missiles > firearm > parts and fittings of firearms > [noun] > sight > types of
dispart1578
telescopic sight1674
plain sight1686
aim-frontlet1745
hausse1787
foresight1806
gloaming sight1817
night-sight1822
bead1831
leaf1832
backsight1847
globe sight1847
pendulum hausse1850
hindsight1851
tangent scale1859
tangent1861
tangent backsight1862
training pendulum1862
training level1863
peep sight1866
dispart-sight1867
notch sight1867
buck-horn1877
orthoptic1881
aperturea1884
pinball-sighta1884
dispart patch1884
sight bar1884
flap-sight1887
barley-corn1896
ring sight1901
riflescope1902
spotting scope1904
tangent sight1908
Aldis sight1918
wind-sight1923
scope sight1934
gyro-sight1942
1902 Recreation 16 216/2 Two other squirrels fall at 75 yards, making 4 shot through head or neck in the gray, uncertain light of early morning and under conditions most trying to the best rifle 'scope on earth.
1978 Detroit Free Press 5 Mar. c 9/4 (advt.) A spring sale... All riflescopes..¼ off.
2004 Shooting Sports Oct. 33 (advt.) Nite-Eye riflescopes features fully multi-coated CLS optics designed to pass more light and provide greater contrast.
rifle shirt n. U.S. (now historical) = rifle frock n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > clothing for body or trunk (and limbs) > [noun] > coat > types of > close-fitting
juste-au-corps1656
tunic1667
chesticore1671
Newmarket coat1751
rifle shirt1775
rifle frock1776
jeistiecor1817
rifle coatc1827
Newmarket1843
1775 J. Thacher Mil. Jrnl. (1823) 38 They are dressed in white frocks, or rifle shirts, and round hats.
1835 W. Irving Tour on Prairies viii. 59 His dress was similar to that of the Captain; a rifle shirt and leggings of dressed deer-skin.
2004 J. Milsop Continental Infantryman Amer. Revol. 22 A rifle shirt, worn for fatigue duties, spared the uniform coat and made it last longer.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2010; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
riflev.1
/ˈrʌɪfl/, U.S. /ˈraɪf(ə)l/α. Middle English refyl, Middle English ruyfle, Middle English ryfel, Middle English ryful, Middle English ryfyl, Middle English ryuel, Middle English–1500s rifil, Middle English–1500s ryfle, Middle English–1600s rifel, Middle English– rifle, 1500s riefle, 1500s rifell, 1500s ryfull, 1500s–1600s ryfell; Scottish pre-1700 rufle, pre-1700 1800s– rifle.
β. Middle English reffel, Middle English ryffyll, Middle English–1500s ryffle, Middle English–1700s riffle, 1500s riffell, 1500s ryffel, 1500s–1600s riffel, 1600s ryffell; Scottish pre-1700 riffell, pre-1700 riffle, pre-1700 ruffell, pre-1700 ryffle.
1. transitive. To carry off as booty; to plunder; to steal. Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > spoliation or depredation > despoil or prey upon [verb (transitive)] > make a spoil of (something)
stripc1200
spoilc1380
riflec1391
pilla1393
spoila1400
bezzlec1430
peelc1450
despoil1483
spulyie1488
strip1594
prey1596
pillage1600
plunder1643
scoff1893
c1391 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Bodl. 294) v. l. 7036* (MED) He ruyfleþ [v.r. rifleþ] bothe book and belle, So forth with al [the remenant To goddes hous appourtenant].
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) v. 6521 Til he the mannes Purs have cut And rifleth that he fint therinne.
c1450 Form Excommun. (Douce 60) in G. Kristensson John Mirk's Instr. Parish Priests (1974) 105 (MED) We accorsen..Also alle comyn and opon theves, robbers þat ayen þe pes of þe king robben And reven and sleen and ruyflen eny mannys gode.
1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 355 They will quickly rifle and eate vp all that euer we haue in this Countrie.
1592 T. Tymme Plaine Discouerie Ten Eng. Lepers D j He rifeled their livings, imbeseled the patrimonie of the Church.
1623 J. Bingham tr. Xenophon Hist. 97 Entring the ship,..and putting into it, what he had rifled.
a1648 Ld. Herbert Life Henry VIII (1649) 68 They kill'd some, chased the rest, and rifled his goods.
1749 T. Smollett Regicide iv. iii. 54 Shall he rifle all thy Sweets, at Will?
1765 O. Goldsmith Ess. xxvi. 232 The small-pox,..rifling ev'ry youthful grace, Left but the remnant of a face.
1821 J. Clare Village Minstrel I. 196 Wert thou but a rose..And I a bold bee for to rifle its bloom.
1850 F. W. Robertson Serm. 3rd Ser. xxi. 281 The bodies have been rifled from their mausoleum.
1900 Boston Med. & Surg. Jrnl. 22 Nov. 536/1 I had also expected to close my remarks by wishing this society..that it might live one thousand years..but that wish I am unable to indulge in on account of our friend Dr. Jeffries, who has rifled the sweets of the flower garden.
1977 R. Mehta Inside Haveli ii. vi. 115 Some other children were perched up on the branches of a jamun tree, busy rifling the juicy purple plums.
1995 Alternative Press May 65/2 Their seventh new album in, er, seventeen years, Spaceman packs every trick that our latter-day louts have rifled from history's hatbox.
2. † e. transitive. To caress or fondle sexually; to engage in sexual activity with (a person, usually a woman). Also intransitive. Obsolete.† f. transitive. To examine or investigate (an idea, argument, etc.) thoroughly. Obsolete.† g. intransitive. To search or probe into an idea, theme, etc. Obsolete.
a. transitive. To plunder or rob (a person) in a thorough manner, esp. by searching his or her pockets or clothes; to search (a person) thoroughly with intent to rob.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > rob [verb (transitive)] > search with a view to robbing > specifically a person
riflea1400
to go over ——1889
a1400 W. Langland Piers Plowman (Corpus Cambr.) (1873) C. v. l. 54 What wey ich wynde ful wel he aspieþ, To robbe me and to ryfle me.
c1400 (c1378) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Laud 581) (1869) B. xvii. 99 Went neuere wy in þis worlde þorw þat wildernesse Þat he ne was robbed or rifled [C. riflede].
c1450 in F. J. Furnivall Hymns to Virgin & Christ (1867) 44 Oon wolde riflee us at hame, And gadere þe flour out of our gryst.
1483 W. Caxton tr. J. de Voragine Golden Legende 68/2 The philistees wente for to ryfle and pylle them that were deed.
a1566 R. Edwards Damon & Pithias (1571) sig. F3v Let vs riffell him so that he haue not one pennie to blesse him.
1609 S. Rowlands Dr. Merrie-man (Hunterian Club) 3 Vnto a Wood hard by, they hale him in, And rifle him vnto his very skin.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Two Gentlemen of Verona (1623) iv. i. 4 We'll make you sit, and rifle you. View more context for this quotation
1684 J. Bunyan Pilgrim's Progress 2nd Pt. 156 Now the Gyant was rifling of him, with a purpose after that to pick his Bones. View more context for this quotation
1723 D. Defoe Hist. Col. Jack (ed. 2) 383 We were visited and rifled by two Pyrate Barks.
1757 T. Smollett Reprisal i. iii You have..rifled the passengers.
1827 B. Disraeli Vivian Grey III. v. vi. 118 The most skilful plunderer that ever rifled the dying.
1853 C. Merivale Fall Rom. Republic vii. 204 As if..he had been sent to rifle kings and not to conquer them.
1909 Atlantic Monthly Aug. 187/1 In his, as in all armies, there were wretches guilty of most brutal conduct,—wretches who habitually rifled the dead and wounded.
1999 D. Haslam Manchester, Eng. ii. 39 The women of the locality were of the most degraded class, and their chief victims were drunken men, collier lads, and country ‘flats’, whom they picked up and rifled with impunity.
b. transitive. To ransack or search (a receptacle, compartment, etc.) thoroughly, esp. in order to take what is valuable.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > endeavour > searching or seeking > search for or seek [verb (transitive)] > search a place or receptacle thoroughly
asearch1382
searcha1387
ransacka1400
ripea1400
upripe?a1400
riflec1400
ruffle1440
gropea1529
rig1572
rake1618
rummage1621
haul1666
fish1727
call1806
ratch1859
to turn over1859
to go through ——1861
rifle1894
rancel1899
to take apart1920
fine-tooth comb1949
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > rob [verb (transitive)] > search with a view to robbing > specifically a thing or place
riflec1400
c1400 (c1378) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Trin. Cambr. B.15.17) (1975) B. v. l. 231 I roos whan þei were areste and riflede [c1400 C text rifled] hire males.
1455 J. Gresham in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) II. 126 In þe mene tyme his menye robbe his chambre and ryfled his houses, and trussed suyche as they coude gete to-gyddir and caryed it awey on his own hors.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 691/1 I ryfell a chyst, a cofer, or a male, or suche lyke thynge, je fouille... Is it well done to riffell my cofer whyle I am absent?
1590 tr. P. Ubaldini Disc. Spanishe inuading Eng. 1588 23 Two Spanish Galeons..were surprised, and without fight rifeled by the Zelanders.
a1630 F. Moryson in Shakespeare's Europe (1903) i. viii. 127 The searchers rifeled all parts, Carriages, and the least Portmanteau, to finde out things for which Tribute was to be paid.
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost i. 687 Men..with impious hands Rifl'd the bowels of thir mother Earth For Treasures. View more context for this quotation
1728 J. Morgan Hist. Barbary Epitomiz'd in Compl. Hist. Algiers I. 44 The reward was to be..the rifling a well-filled Treasury.
1753 S. Richardson Hist. Sir Charles Grandison III. xviii. 155 The cabinets..were to be broken open, and rifled.
1832 H. Martineau Ireland 76 In time to have..the next mail stopped, in order to rifle the letter bag.
1896 A. Austin England's Darling i. i. 3 Hingvar and Hubba..Ride through East Anglia rifling shrine and cell.
1926 E. Walrond Tropic Death 18 Turtle doves rifled the pods of green peas and purple beans and even the indigestible Brazilian bonavis.
1961 S. J. Perelman in New Yorker 16 Aug. 22/1 Only cobwebs remained in the wine cellar when she had finished rifling it.
2004 Diamond Valley Leader (Austral.) (Nexis) 1 Dec. 17 The thief rifled the cash register then fled.
c. transitive. To rob or strip bare of something. Also in figurative contexts.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > spoliation or depredation > despoil or prey upon [verb (transitive)]
reaveOE
stripa1225
pill?c1225
robc1225
peela1250
despoil1297
raimc1300
spoilc1330
spoila1340
to pull a finch (also pigeon, plover, etc.)c1387
despoil1393
preya1400
spoila1400
spulyiea1400
unspoila1400
riflec1400
poll1490
to pill and poll1528
to poll and pill1528
exspoila1530
pilyie1539
devour?1542
plume1571
rive1572
bepill1574
fleece1575
to prey over1576
pread1577
disvaledge1598
despoliate1607
to make spoil of1613
expilate1624
to peel and poll1641
depredate1651
violatea1657
disvalise1672
to pick feathers off (a person)1677
to make stroy of1682
spoliate1699
pilfer1714
snabble1725
rump1815
vampire1832
sweat1847
ploat1855
vampirize1888
c1400 (?a1387) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Huntington HM 137) (1873) C. xi. l. 194 (MED) The catel þat crist hadde, þre cloþes hit were, Ther-of was ryfled [a1425 London Univ. rufled] and robbed er he deyede.
1496 Epit. Iaspar Late Duke of Beddeforde (Pynson) sig. aiiiv Nowe is he gone of erthly blysse ryfyld.
1570 J. Foxe Actes & Monumentes (rev. ed.) II. 2119/2 [They] spared not in his absence, to rifle his study of certaine good bookes and writynges.
1594 W. Shakespeare Lucrece sig. F1v Pure chastitie is rifled of her store. View more context for this quotation
1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. i. 513 Herward..rifled it of all the riches that it had gathered together.
1657 R. Ligon True Hist. Barbados 1 By which meanes I was stript and rifled of all I had.
1703 J. Savage tr. Select Coll. Lett. Antients ii. 17 They rifl'd the Christians of all their Goods.
1772 O. Goldsmith Threnodia Augustalis 11 We'll rifle the spring of its earliest bloom.
1815 Ann. Reg. 1814 48/1 The young woman leaped out of the cart,..and on her return found the deceased rifled of all his property.
1878 R. B. Smith Carthage 415 The vast Necropolis which they had rifled of its contents.
1909 Southern Reporter 48 402/1 His pockets had been rifled of everything of value.
1999 N. Hanif Islamic Concept of Crime & Justice ii. 57 A few servants of Misri Afgan, while on their way from Shah Jahanabad to Garh Muktesar, were set upon by thieves and rifled of all their belongings.
d. transitive. To plunder or pillage (a town, city, country, etc.). Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > sacking, raiding, or looting > sack, raid, or loot [verb (transitive)]
reaveOE
harrowc1000
ravishc1325
spoil1382
forayc1400
forage1417
riflea1425
distrussc1430
riotc1440
detruss1475
sacka1547
havoc1575
sackage1585
pillagea1593
ravage1602
yravish1609
boot-hale1610
booty-hale1610
plunder1632
forage1642
rape1673
prig1819
loot1845
raid1875
a1425 (c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V.) (Royal) (1850) Gen. xxxiv. 27 Whanne thei weren goon out, othere sones of Jacob felden in on the slayn men and rifeliden the citee for the veniaunce of defoulyng of a virgyn.
a1500 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Nero) v. Prol. l. 23 Þe kynge of Mede..Rifflyt Babilon þat ȝhere.
a1513 R. Fabyan New Cronycles Eng. & Fraunce (1516) II. f. clxviv [They] fell vpon a Towne callyd—and it Ryffled.
1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes f. 226v It was a pointe of mercifulnesse..not to riefle or spoyle a citee.
1600 P. Holland tr. Livy Rom. Hist. x. 384 Both the Consuls..gave their townes thus woon, unto their soldiors, to be sacked and rifled.
1675 T. Hobbes tr. Homer Odysses xi. 140 When at last We won and rifled had the Town of Troy, He home into his Country safely past.
1753 W. Smith tr. Thucydides Hist. Peloponnesian War II. viii. xxi. 424 He rifled the city which was quite unfortified.
1842 Amer. Jurist & Law Mag. July 267 That able but rapacious general, who conquered and rifled India.
1859 W. K. Tweedie Ruined Cities of East xvi. 143 Xerxes, when ingloriously retreating from Greece, rifled Babylon.
1886 H. G. Watres Cobwebs 142 They had rifled the land.
1922 H. Robinson Devel. Brit. Empire 31 At Valparaiso the English plundered a large ship and rifled the town.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > love > action of caressing > caress [verb (transitive)] > caress in order to excite sexually > engage in sexual caressing
rifle1560
lumber1938
1560 T. Becon Inuectiue agaynst Whoredome in Wks. II. f. cclxxxxiiii/1 Down with those maids yt for a trifle Will suffre men with them to tryfle And both theyr bodies and clothes ryfle.
c1650 in J. W. Hales & F. J. Furnivall Bp. Percy's Folio MS: Loose & Humorous Songs (1867) 47 Then lets imbrace, & riffle & trifle.
1733 T. Cibber Harlot's Progress 9 While me he is rifling, I'll rifle his Purse.
1771 A. Griffith Swadler iii. 36 As soon as ever he begins to rifle Jane, she's to call out for Help.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > enquiry > investigation, inspection > close examination, scrutiny > scrutinize [verb (transitive)]
through-seekOE
gropea1250
to search outa1382
ensearch1382
boltc1386
examinea1387
ransackc1390
ripea1400
search1409
overreach?a1425
considerc1425
perquirec1460
examec1480
peruse?1520
grounda1529
study1528
oversearch1532
perscrute1536
scrute1536
to go over ——1537
scan1548
examinate1560
rifle1566
to consider of1569
excuss1570
ripe1573
sift1573
sift1577
to pry into ——1581
dive1582
rub1591
explore1596
pervestigate1610
dissecta1631
profound1643
circumspect1667
scrutinize1671
perscrutatea1679
introspect1683
rummage1690
reconnoitre1740
scrutinate1742
to look through1744
scrutiny1755
parse1788
gun1819
cat-haul1840
vivisect1876
scour1882
microscope1888
tooth-comb1893
X-ray1896
comb1904
fine-tooth comb1949
1566 T. Drant tr. Horace Medicinable Morall sig. Biijv Ryfle thou thy conscience, And looke thou be not led With any vyce.
1573 G. Harvey Let.-bk. (1884) 10 Thos paradoxis..propoundid of me out of others to be discussid and riflid in disputation.
1670 G. Havers tr. G. Leti Il Cardinalismo di Santa Chiesa i. ii. 56 That they may be ready..to rifle the Arguments of the other.
1696 J. Sergeant Meth. to Sci. ii. iii. 151 If we rifle the Words to get out the Inward Sense.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > discovery > research > find out by investigation [verb (transitive)] > by study or observation
findOE
to find outc1405
investigate?1495
to find forth?a1500
spell1587
research1588
rifle1614
excudate1831
work1840
approfound1885
1614 R. Wilkinson Paire of Serm. 3 The logician rifleth into matter, forme, efficient, and all the causes.
1666 S. Shaw Voice of One crying in Wilderness 81 This is a large Theme, and therefore I dare not rifle into it particularly.
3.
a. intransitive. To engage in pillage or plunder, or in searching with a view to this. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > taking > stealing or theft > robbery > rob [verb (intransitive)] > search with view to robbing
rifle1415
1415 T. Hoccleve Addr. to Sir John Oldcastle l. 459 in Minor Poems (1970) i. 22 For to ryfle, is your entente final.
c1475 (c1399) Mum & Sothsegger (Cambr. Ll.4.14) (1936) i. l.16 By rewthles routus þat ryffled euere.
1582 R. Stanyhurst tr. Virgil First Foure Bookes Æneis ii. 40 My enymyes to behold too riffle in hous seat.
1626 J. Smith Accidence Young Sea-men 26 You may stow the men, rifle, pillage, or sacke, and crye a prize.
1638 T. Herbert Some Yeares Trav. (rev. ed.) 204 Some Pagan Sergeants, who..rifled about, broke-ope her Chests, and carried away what was valuable.
1738 tr. C. Rollin Anc. Hist. (ed. 2) I. Pref. p. xxi Nor am [I] asham'd, to rifle wherever I come.
1843 E. Bulwer-Lytton Last of Barons I. i. iv. 64 Rob, then, rifle, if ye will.
2000 B. Roberts in J. Thomas Catwomen from Hell 122 On one occasion, she had startled a pick-pocket rifling among the hanging outer coats.
b. intransitive. To make a vigorous or thorough search through something, esp. with intent to take or steal.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > endeavour > searching or seeking > search for or seek [verb (transitive)] > search a place or receptacle thoroughly
asearch1382
searcha1387
ransacka1400
ripea1400
upripe?a1400
riflec1400
ruffle1440
gropea1529
rig1572
rake1618
rummage1621
haul1666
fish1727
call1806
ratch1859
to turn over1859
to go through ——1861
rifle1894
rancel1899
to take apart1920
fine-tooth comb1949
1894 Washington Post 11 Aug. 8 The Post-Office Department has been informed of the arrest..of S. L. Rosencrans,..for rifling through registered matter.
1925 Bismarck (N. Dakota) Tribune 6 Jan. 1/1 The new governor rifled through a great heap of congratulatory telegrams.
1977 Woman & Home Nov. 154/2 Grace started to rifle through the contents of her bag.
2007 Independent on Sunday 11 Feb. (ABC Mag.) 8/2 She's a card-carrying celebrity who has the paparazzi rifling through her rubbish.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > hawking > action of hawk > [verb (intransitive)] > seize quarry > by feathers
rifle1486
1486 Bk. St. Albans sig. avii (MED) Mony an hawke for egernesse when he shulde Nomme a fowle, he seesith bot the federis, and as ofte as he doos so, he Riflith.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > operation upon something > have effect on [verb (transitive)] > strongly or injuriously
rifle1604
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > damage > damage or injure [verb (transitive)]
mareOE
shendOE
hinderc1000
amarOE
awemc1275
noyc1300
touchc1300
bleche1340
blemisha1375
spill1377
misdoa1387
grieve1390
damagea1400
despoil?a1400
matea1400
snapea1400
mankc1400
overthrowa1425
tamec1430
undermine1430
blunder1440
depaira1460
adommage?1473
endamage1477
prejudicec1487
fulyie1488
martyra1500
dyscrase?1504
corrupt1526
mangle1534
danger1538
destroy1542
spoil1563
ruinate1564
ruin1567
wrake1570
injury1579
bane1587
massacre1589
ravish1594
wrong1595
rifle1604
tainta1616
mutilea1618
to do violence toa1625
flaw1665
stun1676
quail1682
maul1694
moil1698
damnify1712
margullie1721
maul1782
buga1790
mux1806
queer1818
batter1840
puckeroo1840
rim-rack1841
pretty1868
garbage1899
savage1899
to do in1905
strafe1915
mash1924
blow1943
nuke1967
mung1969
1604 S. Hieron Preachers Plea in Wks. (1620) I. 480 We can be content to heare the word vntill it rifle vs.
1641 J. Milton Reason Church-govt. 57 That lightning which harms not the skin, and rifles the entrals.
1649 Bp. J. Taylor Great Exemplar §6 Conversation..does too much rifle the ligaments and reverence of spiritual authority.
1660 T. Stanley Hist. Philos. III. v. 148 Where neither blasting frost, nor hoary snow Rifle the place; but Heaven is ever bright.
1763 Philos. Trans. 1762 (Royal Soc.) 52 510 The detached side-shootings of this flash only rifling the plaister in several places.
1772 Philos. Trans. 1771 (Royal Soc.) 61 72 At the same time the roof of the church was rifling.
1872 H. E. P. Spofford Thief in Night i. 1 The garden lay sparkling... A breeze, that was only living fragrance, rifled its roses.
1887 A. Austin Prince Lucifer vi. ii. 186 The violet, though rifled by the wind, Doth keep some fragrance in it.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2010; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
riflev.2
/ˈrʌɪfl/, U.S. /ˈraɪf(ə)l/ 1. intransitive. To play dice; to gamble, esp. for a stake. Now rare (English regional in later use).Quot. 1891 may be an example of sense 2.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > games of chance > dice-playing > play at dice [verb (intransitive)]
taveleOE
dicec1440
rifle1590
to shake the elbow1705
jeff1837
to touch ivory1864
to roll (the, them) bones1891
1590 T. Lodge Rosalynde (Hunterian Club) 17 Let him reade on Galen while thou riflest with gold.
1598 G. Chapman Blinde Begger of Alexandria sig. B3v Weele..call people together, put crownes a peece lets rifle for her.
1612 B. Jonson Alchemist i. i. sig. B3v He would haue..a Familiar, To rifle with at horses, and winne cuppes. View more context for this quotation
a1634 W. Austin Devotionis Augustinianæ Flamma (1635) 111 These Theeves cast Lotts, and rifled for it.
1673 J. Dryden Amboyna v. 65 We will divide their greatest Wealth by Lots, while wantonly we rifle for the rest.
1891 in R. P. Chope Dial. Hartland, Devonshire Rifle, to raffle.
2. transitive. To offer as a prize in a raffle. Also with away, off. Now U.S. regional.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > lottery or raffle > raffle [verb (transitive)] > spend in raffle or lottery
rifle1607
horse away1732
1607 T. Dekker & J. Webster North-ward Hoe v. sig. H If you like not that course but do intend to be rid of her: rifle her at a Tauerne.
1608 T. Dekker Lanthorne & Candle-light sig. H4v In the very morning when he is to be rifled away amongst the Gamesters in Smithfield.
?1623 J. Mabbe tr. J. Marti Rogue ii. 238 I made diuers and sundry peeces: whereof I sold some for ready money, others I lent out at weddings with good gaines, and others I rifled away [Sp. rifadas] at dice.
1657 Lusts Dominion v. iii. sig. f10v I have at one throw, Rifled away the Diademe of Spain.
1905 S. C. Rees Miracles in Slums 69 With no means of support, she had ‘rifled’ away her husband's watch to get bread.
1976 A. Garber Mountain-ese 75 They're gonna rifle off a new care fer charity this year.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2010; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
riflev.3
/ˈrʌɪfl/, U.S. /ˈraɪf(ə)l/ 1.
a. transitive. To cut spiral grooves in (the barrel or bore of a gun or cannon). Spiral grooves are used in the bore in order to impart a spin to the projectile, which stabilizes the trajectory through the air by a gyroscopic action.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > military equipment > production and development of arms > produce or develop arms [verb (transitive)] > processes in gun-making
stock1539
ranforce1547
newel1611
rifle1619
fortify1627
screw1635
chamber1708
reborea1792
flint1803
restocking1805
vent1828
percussionize1832
ream1841
percussion1844
restock1844
retube1846
revent1864
reline1875
sleeve1976
1619–20 [implied in: R. James Bodl. MS. James 43* 58 βïntoval, a rifled peece. (at rifled adj.2 1)].
1635 Patent in Sir S. D. Scott Brit. Army (1868) II. 286 To rifle, cutt out, and screwe barrels, as wide, or as close, or as deepe, or as shallowe, as shalbe required.
1746 tr. G. Le Blond Treat. Artillery ix. 62 The carabine is a sort of musquetoon, the barrel of which is riffled spirally from the breech.
1797 Jrnl. Nat. Philos. Nov. 382 The effect which is produced by rifling musquetry.
1860 All Year Round 15 Sept. 548 The same gun rifled..has a recoil two feet less.
1879 Man. Siege & Garrison Artillery Exercises 42 R.M.L. guns, up to the 7-inch inclusive, are rifled with a uniform spiral.
1945 H. C. Town & D. Potter Cutting Tool Pract. vi. 87 Larger guns are rifled with broaching cutters which are pushed through the barrel to get chip room.
1990 Guns & Weapons Sept. 44/2 The ‘in-house’ manufacturing input includes rifling the barrel blanks and all the finishing.
b. transitive. To cut spiral grooves in (a projectile). rare.
ΚΠ
1855 Brit. Ass. Rep. 206 The author pronounced the principle of rifling the shot instead of rifling the gun..to be absolutely necessary for large [projectiles].
1922 Gunnery for Heavy Artillery (new ed.) (U.S. Coast Artillery Board) ix. 60 The other method [of developing rotation of the projectile] is to rifle the projectile itself either with or without the use of supplementary rotating bands.
2.
a. transitive. To shoot with a rifle. Also intransitive with at.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > injury > injure [verb (transitive)] > wound > wound with missile
shootc893
shoot1297
feather1415
to shoot (a person, thing) through1535
daga1572
pistol1598
lace1622
to shoot‥through and througha1648
pink1661
pop1762
plump1785
wing1802
drill1808
rifle1821
leg1829
hole1847
shot1855
blunderbuss1870
riddle1874
pip1900
slot1987
society > armed hostility > military equipment > operation and use of weapons > action of propelling missile > discharge of firearms > use or operation of small arms > use small arms [verb (transitive)] > shoot with rifle
rifle1821
1821 A. Welby Visit N. Amer. 85 We kept a good look out, a little apprehensive of being rifled at from behind the trees.
1821 A. Welby Visit N. Amer. 95 Instances are not infrequent of individuals among them being ‘rifled’ for having rendered themselves obnoxious.
1901 H. Smith Autobiogr. I. 248 All my Rifle education was required to protect myself from being rifled.
1972 Star (Johannesburg) 17 Mar. 17 Here the 1700-strong Knopkierie Kommando, rough Afrikaner men, were shelled and rifled into submission.
1994 Fortean Times Oct. 48/1 Three soldiers had their brains rifled in the prior two weeks.
b. transitive. Sport. To hit or kick (a ball) hard and straight.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > [verb (transitive)] > play ball in specific way
tossc1530
send1782
place1819
dowf1825
loft1857
belt1870
screw1881
smash1882
English1884
carry1889
slice1890
mishit1903
balloon1904
rainbow1906
rifle1914
tuck1958
stroke1960
1914 Oakland (Calif.) Tribune 6 Mar. Schalk rifled the ball to Alcock.
1948 News-Palladium (Benton Harbor, Mich.) 14 Aug. 6/3 Hazel, going down to second, overran the base as Joe Mack rifled the ball to McCoy.
1975 New Yorker 7 Apr. 91/1 The pivot play, in which the ball was rifled in to the center positioned at the foul line with his back to the basket.
2000 Kingdom (Killarrey, County Kerry) 19 Sept. iii. 5/1 Receiving a pass from O'Cinneide he stole along the endline before rifling the ball under the body of the advancing Tierney.
c. transitive. To deliver (a blow, punch, etc.) directly and forcefully. Also with in.
ΚΠ
1939 Oshkosh (Wisconsin) Northwestern 21 Apr. 17/2 Nelson rifled some punches at him that kept him at a distance.
1977 Daily Mirror 16 Mar. 30/5 Referee James Brimmell stepped in to save the 22-year-old Scot after the challenger had pinned him on the ropes for fully a minute, rifling in a furious stream of punches.
2002 Hamilton (Ont.) Spectator (Nexis) 24 Jan. e2 Lewis rifled a right back at Tyson that appeared to glance off his head and draw blood at his scalp line.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2010; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.11459
n.2a1500
n.31746v.1c1391
v.21590v.31619