pistol

[ pis-tl ]

/ ˈpɪs tl /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pistol ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a short firearm intended to be held and fired with one hand.

verb (used with object), pis·toled, pis·tol·ing or (especially British) pis·tolled, pis·tol·ling.

to shoot with a pistol.

Nearby words

pistareen, piste, pistil, pistillate, pistoia, pistol, pistol grip, pistol-handle knife, pistol-whip, pistole, pistoleer

Origin of pistol

1560–70; < Middle French pistole < German, earlier pitschal, pitschole, petsole < Czech píšt’ala literally, pipe, fife, whistle (presumably a slang term for a type of light harquebus employed during the Hussite wars), akin to pištět to squeak, peep

Related forms

pis·tol·like, adjective

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

Examples from the Web for pistol

On October 5, 2013, Wilson pointed a pistol at a postal clerk.
Post Office Robbers More Wanted Than ISIS|M.L. Nestel|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He pointed a pistol at a grocery checkout woman and swiped whatever cash he could into his pockets before booking it.
Post Office Robbers More Wanted Than ISIS|M.L. Nestel|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A call made to police beforehand described Rice as “a guy with a pistol” on a swing set, but said it was “probably fake.”
The 14 Teens Killed by Cops Since Michael Brown|Nina Strochlic|November 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In Devoted to Death, Chesnut describes a Mexican hitman who has an image of la Santa engraved on the butt of his pistol.
America’s Fastest Growing Death Holiday Is From Mexico|Michael Schulson|November 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST

For all the talk of high-tech military gear, this began like a scene from long ago: two men, one pistol, six shots.
Why Won't Obama Go to Ferguson?|Stuart Stevens|August 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The bar fell aside and he pulled a .45 pistol from its clamp.
The Syndic|C.M. Kornbluth
Yet how could he have held the pistol to her head, saying, "No marriage, no elopement."
The Incredible Honeymoon|E. Nesbit
Roland sprang into it, a pistol in one hand, his sword in the other.
The Companions of Jehu|Alexandre Dumas, pre
Rising, with compressed lips he held toward Muskoka the butt of his pistol.
The Young Railroaders|Francis Lovell Coombs
Here he slapped his pistol pocket at the back of his lumbar region.
Dracula's Guest|Bram Stoker

British Dictionary definitions for pistol

pistol

/ (ˈpɪstəl) /

noun

a short-barrelled handgun

hold a pistol to a person's head to threaten a person in order to force him to do what one wants

verb -tols, -tolling or -tolled or US -tols, -toling or -toled

(tr) to shoot with a pistol

Word Origin for pistol

C16: from French pistole, from German, from Czech pišt'ala pistol, pipe; related to Russian pischal shepherd's pipes

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

pistol

noun

verb (used with object), pis·toled, pis·tol·ing or (especially British) pis·tolled, pis·tol·ling.

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Nearby words

Origin of pistol

Related forms

Examples from the Web for pistol

British Dictionary definitions for pistol

pistol

noun

verb -tols, -tolling or -tolled or US -tols, -toling or -toled

Word Origin for pistol