firelock

English

Etymology

From fire +‎ lock.

Noun

firelock (plural firelocks)

1. (now historical) A form of gunlock, in which the priming is ignited by a spark. [from 16th c.]
2. (now historical) A firearm using such a gunlock. [from 17th c.]
   • 1819, Washington Irving, The Sketch Book, Rip Van Winkle:

     He looked round for his gun, but … he found an old firelock lying by him, … He now suspected that the grave roysters of the mountain had put a trick upon him, ….

   • 1824, Town and Country Tales, page 115:

     Alfred, surprised to meet his father, whom he thought absent from home, […] stood, holding his firelock in one hand, and his hat in the other […]

   • 1999, Mike Mitchell, translating Johann Grimmelshausen, Simplicissimus, Dedalus 2016, p. 48:

     Before we were out of the forest, however, we saw about ten peasants, some armed with firelocks [translating ], others busy burying something.

References

• “firelock”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• flockier