shotgun
/ˈʃɔtɡɐ̞n/
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.81 in modern English
Meaning
noun
A gun which fires loads typically consisting of small metal balls, called shot, from a cartridge.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
The front passenger seat in a vehicle, next to the driver; so called because the position of the shotgun-armed guard on a horse-drawn stage-coach, wagon train, or gold transport was next to the driver on a forward-mounted bench seat. Can also be used in situations of claiming other resources such as bedrooms.
Countable; Slang; Uncountable
noun
A one-story dwelling with no hallways or corridors, with the rooms arranged in a straight line.
American usage; Countable; Uncountable
noun
An offensive formation in which the quarterback receives the snap at a distance behind the center, often with a running back set to one or both sides of him.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
Relating to the use of numerous, diverse or indiscriminate means to achieve a particular result.
Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "The farmer's son brought home a Thanksgiving turkey from the wild that he killed with his shotgun."
- "You can't talk to a man / With a shotgun in his hand"
- "An unusual custom is followed at Llangennith, when shotguns are fired at a wedding - to scare off evil spirits from the newlyweds."
- "I call shotgun!"
- "We rode our bikes to it this morning—me, two of my brothers, four other neighborhood kids who were ready to be baptized, plus my father and some other neighborhood adults riding shotgun."
- "Elvis Presley was born in a two-bedroom shotgun in Tupelo, Mississippi."
Etymology
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈʃɔtɡɐ̞n/
- British English: /ˈʃɒtɡʌn/
Usage
- Countable
- Uncountable
- Slang
- American usage
- Informal
- Transitive verb