firing pin
5
6.8
- noun
- /ˈfaɪərɪŋ pɪn/
- Specialized
:
percutor
- We took the precaution of removing the firing pin before the mission started.
- firing pin mechanism
- firing pin hit the primer
- firing pin on your gun
Examples
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When the firing pin strikes the primer, it creates a spark, igniting the powder, which accelerates the bullet through the barrel.
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The firing pin struck the primer, causing the bullet to be fired.
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I took the firing pin out!
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Just hear me out and I will return your firing pin.
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All we need now is the firing pin.
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You take out the firing pin.
Fiction book (1997) -
The firing pin is filed down, right?
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And removed the firing pin from that pistol.
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I heard the firing pin snap.
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Brogan removed the firing pin from that gun.
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from the constituents: 'firing' (relating to discharge/ignition) modifies 'pin' (a small slender metal piece), so a learner who knows both words can infer it is a small pin used in the firing mechanism of a firearm. This noun–noun compounding pattern (function/relator + object) is common cross-linguistically, making the term compositional though somewhat more technical.
Etymology
Firing pin is the name for the small metal pin inside a gun that hits the bullet to make it 'fire'. So the name shows it is the small part that starts the shot.