sawed-off shotgun

American  

[sawd-awf shot-guhn, -of] / ˈsɔdˌɔf ˈʃɒtˌgʌn, -ˌɒf /

especially British, sawn-off shotgun

noun

1. a shotgun having a shorter barrel than a standard shotgun.

   The informants had seen shell casings on the stairs and a sawed-off shotgun in the cellar.

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Etymology

Origin of sawed-off shotgun

First recorded in 1895–1900

Example Sentences

Investigators found a sawed-off shotgun, a second shotgun and other unspecified evidence during a search of Hale’s home.

From Seattle Times

Police said a search of Hale’s home turned up a sawed-off shotgun, a second shotgun and other unspecified evidence.

From Seattle Times

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Texas, challenges the move to treat the guns like short-barreled rifles, a weapon like a sawed-off shotgun that has been heavily regulated since the 1930s.

From Seattle Times

Omar Little was a Black man who stalked the streets of Baltimore wearing a swashbuckling duster and carrying a deadly sawed-off shotgun.

From Washington Post

Roxboro Police Chief David Hess said investigators found a loaded sawed-off shotgun at the scene.

From Seattle Times