musket
English
editAlternative forms
editEtymology
editFirst attested around 1210 as a surname, and later in the 1400s as a word for the sparrowhawk (Middle English forms: musket, muskett, muskete (“sparrow hawk”)),[1][2] from Middle French mousquet, from Old Italian moschetto (a diminutive of mosca (“fly”), from Latin musca) used to refer initially to a sparrowhawk (given its small size or speckled appearance)[2] and then a crossbow arrow. The name was subsequently adopted for a heavier, shoulder-fired version of an arquebus, [2][3][4] adhering to a pattern of naming firearms and cannons after birds of prey and similar creatures (compare falcon, falconet),[2][4] a sense which was also borrowed into French and then (around 1580)[3] into English.[4] Cognate to Spanish mosquete, Portuguese mosquete.[4] Smoothbore firearms continued to be called muskets even as they switched from using matchlocks to flintlocks to percussion locks, but with the advent of rifled muskets, the word was finally displaced by rifle.[4]
Pronunciation
edit- IPA(key): /ˈmʌskət/, /ˈmʌskɪt/
Audio (Southern England): (file) - Rhymes: -ʌskɪt
Noun
editmusket (plural muskets)
- A kind of firearm formerly carried by the infantry of an army, originally fired by means of a match, or matchlock, for which several mechanical appliances (including the flintlock, and finally the percussion lock) were successively substituted; ultimately superseded by the rifle.
- Soldier, soldier, won't you marry me, with your musket, fife and drum.
- Sam, Sam, pick up thy musket.
- 1590, Roger Williams, A Briefe diſscourſe of Warre[1], London: Thomas Orwin, page 37:
- […] you may be assured, had they known the terrour of Muskets, Caliuers and Piſtols, they would haue vſed the leſſe Bowes, Speares and Bills; […]
- 1689, William Plunket, William III of England, “General Obſervations § IV”, in The General Exercise Ordered by His Highness the Prince of Orange, To be punctually obſerved of all the Infantry in Service of the States General of the United Provinces. […] [2], page 4:
- The Souldier having his Musket ſhoulder'd, muſt ſtand ſtraight upon his Limbs, hold up his Head, and look always to the commanding Officer, […]
- 1869, J[ames] Fenimore Cooper, “Moral Tales and Sketches § Battle of Bunker Hill”, in H. A. Cleveland, editor, Golden Sheaves Gathered from the Fields of Ancient and Modern Literature: A Miscellany of Choice Reading for the Entertainment of the Old and the Young in Hours that Are Lonely and Weary[3], Zeigler, McCurdy & Co., page 24:
- The whole of the tumultuous scene vanished from the senses of Lionel at the flash of the musket of this man, and he sunk beneath the feet of the combatants, insensible of further triumph, and of every danger.
- 1949, Albert Manucy, “The Era of Artillery § Rifling”, in Artillery Through the Ages[:] A Short Illustrated History of Cannon, Emphasizing Types Used in America[4], Reprint 1985 edition, page 14:
- Probably, rifling evolved from the early observation of the feathers on an arrow-and from the practical results of cutting channels in a musket, originally to reduce fouling, then because it was found to improve accuracy of the shot.
- (falconry) A male Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus).
Derived terms
editRelated terms
editTranslations
edit
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References
edit- ^ “musket, noun.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “musket”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 “musket”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 “musket”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
Danish
editEtymology
editFrom French mousquet (“musket”).
Pronunciation
editNoun
editmusket c (singular definite musketten, plural indefinite musketter)
Inflection
editcommon gender |
Singular | Plural | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
indefinite | definite | indefinite | definite | |
nominative | musket | musketten | musketter | musketterne |
genitive | muskets | muskettens | musketters | musketternes |
Further reading
edit- musket on the Danish Wikipedia.Wikipedia da
Dutch
editPronunciation
editEtymology 1
editFrom Middle Dutch musket.
Noun
editmusket n (plural musketten, diminutive musketje n)
Derived terms
editEtymology 2
edit(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Noun
editmusket n (uncountable)
Derived terms
editMiddle English
editAlternative forms
editEtymology
editBorrowed from Old Northern French mousket, borrowed itself from Italian moschetto.
Pronunciation
editNoun
editmusket (plural musketes)
- A sparrowhawk or musket.
Descendants
edit- English: musket
References
edit- “musket(e, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-10-03.
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle French
- English terms derived from Old Italian
- English terms derived from Latin
- English 2-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English terms with audio links
- Rhymes:English/ʌskɪt
- Rhymes:English/ʌskɪt/2 syllables
- English lemmas
- English nouns
- English countable nouns
- English terms with usage examples
- English terms with quotations
- en:Falconry
- en:Accipiters
- en:Firearms
- Danish terms borrowed from French
- Danish terms derived from French
- Danish terms with IPA pronunciation
- Danish lemmas
- Danish nouns
- Danish common-gender nouns
- Danish dialectal terms
- da:Firearms
- Dutch terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:Dutch/ɛt
- Dutch terms inherited from Middle Dutch
- Dutch terms derived from Middle Dutch
- Dutch lemmas
- Dutch nouns
- Dutch nouns with plural in -en
- Dutch neuter nouns
- Dutch obsolete forms
- Dutch uncountable nouns
- Middle English terms borrowed from Old Northern French
- Middle English terms derived from Old Northern French
- Middle English terms derived from Italian
- Middle English terms with IPA pronunciation
- Middle English lemmas
- Middle English nouns
- enm:Birds of prey