a gun or cannon with a barrel of (relatively) great length; spec. (in later use) a handgun with a long barrel, such as a rifle, as distinct from a…

An early kind of firearm: see quot. 1834.

A kind of firearm, used in 17th cent.

A long-barrelled gun, as a musket or rifle.

a type of infantry gun; = musket, n.2

a large hand-gun supported on a tripod or crutch, for firing over a rampart.

a gun which is fired from the shoulder, as distinguished from a stancheon or punt gun.

A gun in which the expansion of compressed gas is used to propel a bullet or other missile. Cf. air gun, n., wind-gun, n.

A self-cocking firearm.

(see quot. 1969); also (with hyphen) attributive; also elliptical = a bolt-action gun.

used attributively as snap action gun (see quot. 1884); also to designate switches and relays that make and break contact rapidly, independently of…

a gun carried on or across the saddle of a horse or other animal.

A gun with more than one barrel. rare.

Any of several kinds of primitive firearms, originally introduced by Danish traders.

a clip-loading firearm.

Originally U.S. A pump-action firearm. Cf. earlier pump gun n. at pump, v. compounds 2.

a miniature gun which can be concealed in the clothing.

(a) (now rare) = main sense above; (b) originally Science Fiction, a weapon incorporating a laser; a toy intended to resemble this; (c) any of…

Science Fiction. A weapon producing destructive laser or similar beams (of variable phase); spec. a (usually hand-held) device whose output can be…

In form Magnum. A gun of a type designed to fire cartridges more powerful than its calibre suggests. Frequently attributive.