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Glite Dictionary
mouse gun

mouse gun

8.3
A very small gun that people use to kill pests or to carry secretly
  • noun
  • /maʊs ɡʌn/
  • US
translation icon : pistola pequeña
  • He keeps a mouse gun in the barn to deal with rodents.

Examples

  • Collectors often admire the engineering behind a well-made mouse gun.

  • The mouse gun fits easily in a pocket or small holster.

  • The mouse gun is small.

  • Many prefer a mouse gun.

  • The farmer used a mouse gun to control the rodent population in his barn.

  • For personal protection, he decided to carry a mouse gun in his jacket.

  • The pest control expert recommended a mouse gun for quick and effective elimination of small pests.

Synonyms

pistol
vsmouse gun
268 2.1

A small gun you hold and fire with one hand

is even smaller and used for pest control or concealed carry
handgun
vsmouse gun
187 4.6

A small gun that you hold and fire with one hand

is smaller in size and often for pest control or concealed carry

How Big

rifle
525 3.2
pistol
268 2.1
derringer
4 9.9
mouse gun
  • US
8.3

Surface Forms

mouse gun singular
mouse guns plural

Morphology

mouse + gun

The meaning 'very small firearm' is directly inferable from combining 'mouse' (a small animal; here used metaphorically to signal small size) with 'gun' (a firearm). This noun–noun compounding pattern that marks size/type is productive in English and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would likely understand the phrase.

Etymology

Mouse gun comes from the picture of a gun as small as a mouse, a tiny weapon you might use to deal with mice or to hide in a pocket. So, the name now means 'a very small firearm' often for pest control or easy carrying.