matchlock
Americannoun
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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
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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
Although relatively complex, and therefore more expensive than the matchlock, smaller wheellocks—the first pistols—could be used with one hand and concealed under a cloak or other garment.
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
His envenomed words snapped out like the clicks of a matchlock, and the old dismay gathered round the heart of the marquise with a chill of exceeding desolation.
From The Maid of Honour, Volume 2 (of 3) A Tale of the Dark Days of France by Wingfield, Lewis
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.
