top gunn.
/ˈtɒp ɡʌn/, U.S. /ˈtɑp ˌɡən/, /ˌtɑp ˈɡən/ 1.
a. A gun positioned or mounted in a ship's top (top n.1 9a). Now historical.
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society > armed hostility > hostilities at sea > naval weapons and equipment > [noun] > ship's guns collectively > gun in specific position
nosepiecea1614
stern-piece1622
chase-piece1626
rakera1640
chase-gun1667
bow-chase1769
chaser1804
stern-chaser1815
top gun1816
bow-chaser1836
1816 Analectic Mag. Sept. 232 A frigate ready to launch, intended to carry 60 guns, (besides top guns) named the Essex.
1886 Engineering 19 Feb. 170/3 The primary use of these weapons is, as top guns, where they would be used to keep up a continuous fire on the enemy's upper deck.
1905 W. F. Fullam & T. C. Hart Text-bk. Ordnance & Gunnery (ed. 2) 34 Top-guns are a part of a ship's secondary battery mounted in the military tops on special ‘top mounts’.
1990 P. Kirsch Galleon i. 19 (caption) As well as the forged-iron breech loaders, there were also on board: four portpieces, ten serpentines,..two top guns..and twenty..hand guns.
b. A gun mounted on or housed within the top part of an aircraft. Now historical.
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1914 Living Age 3 Oct. 51/2 They [sc. German airships] are..armed with guns on top; but it is extremely unlikely that the top guns will be used.
1924 Sci. News-let. 5 9 Should an attack come from above the gunner simply..gets in position to man the top guns.
1940 Manch. Guardian 10 Feb. 9/1 ‘I saw red flashes from his rear top gun,’ said the Spitfire pilot.
1998 R. E. Zinck Final Flight Maggie's Drawers 84 ‘One of 'em came screaming at us at 6 o'clock high,’ Joe remembers... The muffled chatter of the top guns rang out.
2. Originally U.S.
a.
(a) A leading marksman; the winner of a shooting competition.
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1894 Forest & Stream 17 Mar. 241/3 I propose to give you figures..of the Knoxville Gun Club... Our plan is best for the amateur, while McMurchy's gives all or nearly all the ‘stuff’ to the top guns.
1927 Washington Post 20 May 15/7 Elizabeth Pile was the top gun for Central with 97 in each the off-hand and prone.
1994 People (Nexis) 9 Jan. 2 (headline) Wills is top gun; Prince William praised for his shooting ability.
2003 L. Simpson Shotguns & Shotgunning xvi. 118/1 The top guns..shoot thousands upon thousands of targets each year.
(b) Also with capital initials. Originally: the United States Navy pilot considered the most proficient in the use of airborne weaponry following a competition or training exercise. Later more generally: an elite military pilot.Popularized as a name for a training programme for elite United States Navy fighter pilots and flight officers, and by the 1986 film Top Gun (see quot. 1986).
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society > armed hostility > hostilities in the air > airman > [noun] > fighter pilot > excellent or successful
ace1916
top gun1962
1959 Press-Courier (Oxnard, Calif.) 1 Dec. 1/4 The Navy's best planes and sharpest pilots tomorrow enter the final rounds of the fourth annual Naval Air weapons meet..code named ‘Operation Top Gun’.]
1962 Hattiesburg (Mississippi) Amer. 16 May 3 b/3 Navy pilot competition..is held annually to determine the Navy's ‘top gun’ and keep Navy pilots in fighting trim.
1986 Globe & Mail (Toronto) (Nexis) 16 May c5 Tom Cruise is Maverick, the would-be top gun who's fighting the ‘ghost’ of his father, another fighter pilot who may or may not have lost his nerve.
1991 VFW Mag. Nov. 9/1 Today the U.S. Navy G-1 is regulation issue gear to the world's most elite pilots, the ‘top guns’.
2012 M. Tucker (title) Fighter pilot: mis-adventures beyond the sound barrier with an Australian Top Gun.
b. figurative. The top scorer in a sporting competition. More widely: an important, pre-eminent, or influential person in a particular field.
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the mind > attention and judgement > importance > [noun] > one who is important > one who has influence
substantial1548
men of light and leading1790
big fish1827
big1833
sommité1856
leader1858
baron1876
heavyweight1889
Big Daddy1898
uncrowned king (queen)1917
big boy1921
top gun1941
1941 N.Y. Times 16 Mar. s3/8 Rhode Island State..is a spectacular offensive unit that has averaged 74 points a game. Stutz Modzelewski is top gun with 451.
1974 Spartanburg (S. Carolina) Herald 18 Apr. c4/1 With..the pressure cooker of the Masters just behind them, most of the game's top guns are taking a break.
1992 Sunday Observer (New Delhi) 6 Sept. (Colour Mag.) 10/1 Last week, a damage control exercise was put in effect with the top guns in contention for the coveted post of the chairman.
2014 J. Leggett Energy of Nations vii. 62 Barclays..sent their top guns to the Gulf to sell equity to Gulf states.
This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, September 2016; most recently modified version published online December 2019).
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n.1816