🔫 A firing delay ⏳ To hesitate

hangfire

9.9

An unexpected delay between pulling the trigger and the shot

noun
/ˈhæŋfaɪər/

Specialized

: disparo retardado

Proper gun maintenance can reduce the risk of a hangfire, ensuring safer shooting practices.

Examples

When a shooter's gun experiences a hangfire, it may discharge a moment later, surprising the user.
On October 23rd, 2012, at 11:50 PM, Hangfire said: ...

Blog text (12)
A hangfire can lead to dangerous situations if a shooter does not wait after pulling the trigger.

Antonyms

instantaneous

35 5.1

Happening right away without any delay

Surface Forms

hangfire singular

hangfires plural

Morphology

hangfire = hang + fire (semi-transparent) = hang + fire

The components 'hang' + 'fire' point to a delay in firing, but the specialised firearm sense may not be obvious to average learners.

Etymology

Hangfire comes from the two words hang and fire; it first named the odd moment when a gunshot seems to 'hang' and does not go off at once. That's why a hangfire is an unexpected delay after pulling the trigger.