matchlock
Americannoun
-
an old form of gunlock in which the priming was ignited by a slow match.
-
a hand gun, usually a musket, with such a lock.
noun
-
an obsolete type of gunlock igniting the powder by means of a slow match
-
a gun having such a lock
Etymology
Origin of matchlock
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The new technology had a relatively brief lifespan and, like the matchlock, was ultimately replaced by the more reliable flintlock.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
The matchlock wasn’t the only kind of handgun in use.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
Would we still be living in the world of the horse and cart, the quill pen and the matchlock firearm?
From Nature ● Oct. 24, 2017
It was like reintroducing the matchlock or the snaphaunce, but Ruger doted on the single-shot, and that was that.
From Time Magazine Archive
Two of the men, armed with matchlock guns, keep a look-out for the Kurds.
From Journeys in Persia and Kurdistan, Volume II (of 2) Including a Summer in the Upper Karun Region and a Visit to the Nestorian Rayahs by Isabella L. (Isabella Lucy) Bird
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
