flintlock

[ flint-lok ]

/ ˈflɪntˌlɒk /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR flintlock ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an outmoded gunlock in which a piece of flint striking against steel produces sparks that ignite the priming.

a firearm with such a lock.

Nearby words

flint, flint corn, flint glass, flint's murmur, flinthead, flintlock, flintoff, flintshire, flinty, flip, flip chart

Origin of flintlock

First recorded in 1675–85; flint + lock¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for flintlock

On the wall above hung leather thongs, and a long Reefian flintlock stood in the corner.
The Scapegoat|Hall Caine
He was surprised and excited, the trigger of his flintlock trade gun pulled hard, and his shot went wide.
South from Hudson Bay|E. C. [Ethel Claire] Brill
Soon we heard a cracking in the brush and a noise that sounded like the snapping of a flintlock.
Blazing The Way|Emily Inez Denny
Silver glittered about the flintlock and the hardwood stock of his gun.
The Rescue|Joseph Conrad

The mossback cannot win, because he prefers a flintlock to a Mauser.
Chapters in Rural Progress|Kenyon L. Butterfield

British Dictionary definitions for flintlock

flintlock

/ (ˈflɪntˌlɒk) /

noun

an obsolete gunlock in which the charge is ignited by a spark produced by a flint in the hammer

a firearm having such a lock

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