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Glite Dictionary
2️⃣ The number 22 🔫 A small gun
twenty-two

twenty-two

1 7.5
A small pistol or rifle that uses .22 bullets
  • noun
  • /ˈtwɛnti tu/
translation icon : arma de calibre .22
  • The officer holstered his twenty-two after ensuring it was secure.
  • twenty-two gun
  • twenty-two years old

Examples

  • Somebody gave him two in the head with a twenty-two.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • All shot with a high-velocity twenty-two in the back of the head.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • Turn out the light; the twenty-two's under the sink with a full clip and one in the chamber.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • Guy shot five people with a twenty-two before he realized it wasn't a toy.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • Dad and I found twenty-two guns buried in the top of that sap trench.

    Academic text (2014)

  • Courtesy of Bo DuBose. Bo and his father Beverly DuBose, Jr., at the site of the Battle of Spotsylvania, holding four of the twenty-two guns they discovered there, along with the metal detector used to find them.

    Academic text (2014)

  • With a twenty-two in his hand, he felt ready to protect his family.

  • She preferred using a twenty-two for target practice at the shooting range.

Synonyms

.22
vstwenty-two
  • Specialized
7.2

A small pistol or rifle that uses very small bullets

is identical in meaning but presented as the spelled-out number form
twenty-two rifle
vstwenty-two
4.7

A small gun that uses .22 bullets for target shooting or hunting small animals

is the broader firearm term not limited to hunting or long barrel use
twenty-two pistol
vstwenty-two
4.1

A small gun that fires light bullets and does not push back much for target practice

is the broader firearm term not focused on low recoil or training use

Surface Forms

twenty-two singular
twenty-twos plural

Morphology

twenty-two = twenty + two (semi-transparent) = twenty + two

Formally derived from the numeral elements, but the sense 'a .22-caliber firearm' is a specialized metonymic usage that learners cannot reliably infer from the numbers alone.

Etymology

Twenty-two for a gun comes from the size label .22, which shows the bullet is about two tenths of an inch across. So calling a pistol a twenty-two is just a short way to name a gun that fires that small .22 bullet.