MATCHLOCK Definition & Meaning

matchlock

[ mach-lok ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

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.

matchlock

/ ˈ��æ��ʃˌ��ɒ�� /

noun

an obsolete type of gunlock igniting the powder by means of a slow match
a gun having such a lock

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�y��vlog History and Origins

Origin of matchlock¹

First recorded in 1630–40; match ¹ + lock ¹

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

“One of those women I had thrown under an elephant, the other shot with a matchlock.”

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Would we still be living in the world of the horse and cart, the quill pen and the matchlock firearm?

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At that time, the word “arms” meant muskets and matchlock rifles, not weapons that enable an emotionally unbalanced person to commit mass murder in seconds.

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We are as much bygones as the old flint musket or the matchlock.

From

The musketeers carried matchlocks, useless in wet weather, and European-made double-barrelled guns, muskets, and pistols, generally of very inferior quality.

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