blunderbuss

[ bluhn-der-buhs ]

/ ˈblʌn dərˌbʌs /

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noun

a short musket of wide bore with expanded muzzle to scatter shot, bullets, or slugs at close range.

an insensitive, blundering person.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of blunderbuss

1645–55; <Dutch donderbus (equivalent to donderthunder + bus gun, box¹) with donder replaced by blunder. See harquebus

Words nearby blunderbuss

Blumberg, Blume, Blumenau, Blunden, blunder, blunderbuss, blunderhead, blunge, blunger, Blunkett, blunt

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use blunderbuss in a sentence

I keep a good blunderbuss loaded over the door, an' thieves would na' find it an easy job to get in through these iron bars.
The World Before Them|Susanna Moodie
"It's a pity to keep a useful weapon only for show," returned Dolly, eyeing the old blunderbuss with looks of regret.
The World Before Them|Susanna Moodie
And with the first flash of light the foremost guard ran halfway up the steep embankment and leveled his blunderbuss.
Seeing Things at Night|Heywood Broun
So I bestowed a friendly nod on the man with the blunderbuss, and inquired, with a smile, whether I had disturbed his nap.
Carmen|Prosper Merimee

For he had turned his horse loose, and the blunderbuss, which he had been holding horizontally, was now dropped earthward.
Carmen|Prosper Merimee

British Dictionary definitions for blunderbuss

blunderbuss

/ (ˈblʌndəˌbʌs) /

noun

an obsolete short musket with large bore and flared muzzle, used to scatter shot at short range

informal a clumsy unsubtle person

Word Origin for blunderbuss

C17: changed (through the influence of blunder) from Dutch donderbus; from donder thunder + obsolete bus gun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

blunderbuss

Origin of blunderbuss

Words nearby blunderbuss

Words related to blunderbuss

How to use blunderbuss in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for blunderbuss

Word Origin for blunderbuss