flintlock

[ flint-lok ]

See 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.

Origin of flintlock

First recorded in 1675–85; flint + lock¹

Words Nearby flintlock

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

How to use flintlock in a sentence

In 1990, Predator 2 set a Predator upon Los Angeles, and introduced more of the creature’s mythology—including a detail that it possesses an 18th Century flintlock pistol as a trophy.
How Prey Puts a Fresh Spin on the Predator Franchise | Esther Zuckerman | August 5, 2022 | Time
The most welcome capture was the arms, for many of his men were armed with flintlock muskets.
A Little Union Scout | Joel Chandler Harris
They were armed defensively with a shield, and offensively with a curved sword, and a flintlock musket slung at the saddle-bow.
Michael Strogoff | Jules Verne
The boy followed, and then the master took his seat in the stern, with his flintlock fowling piece within reach.
Duffels | Edward Eggleston
flintlock rifles were the usual arm, though here and there a man had a Cramer.
McClure's Magazine, January, 1896, Vol. VI. No. 2 | Various

Some genius in the machine shop altered a matchlock musket to flintlock and showed the local gunsmiths how to do it.
Space Viking | Henry Beam Piper

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

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