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

See Examples For:

sawed-off shotgun

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

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 28, 2023

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

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 27, 2023

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 ● Sep. 7, 2021

In 1939 the Supreme Court unanimously held that Congress could prohibit the possession of a sawed-off shotgun because that weapon had no reasonable relation to the preservation or efficiency of a “well regulated militia.”

From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2019

The express messenger, surprised, hesitated a moment between an impulse to obey the stern command and a desire to argue the matter with his sawed-off shotgun.

From The Long Chance by Kyne, Peter B. (Peter Bernard)