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Glite Dictionary
gun worm

gun worm

9.9
A tool like a corkscrew for pulling unfired bullets from a musket barrel
  • noun
  • Archaic
translation icon : saca balas
  • The soldier used a gun worm to safely remove the cartridge from the musket barrel.

Examples

  • Before the invention of modern firearms, the gun worm was an essential part of every soldier's kit.

  • Collectors often display examples of the gun worm alongside other antique firearm tools.

  • He used a gun worm to clean the musket.

  • The gun worm is essential for maintaining firearms.

  • Before the invention of modern firearms, the gun worm was an essential part of every soldier's kit.

  • Collectors often display examples of the gun worm alongside other antique firearm tools.

  • The soldier used a gun worm to safely remove the cartridge from the musket barrel.

Surface Forms

gun worm singular
gun worms plural

Morphology

gun + worm

The compound is directly compositional: 'gun' names the object and 'worm' (given here as a screw-like device) describes the shape/function, so a learner who knows both constituents can infer it is a screw-shaped implement used with a gun. Although this is a specialized, somewhat rare term, the noun+noun naming pattern is regular and the meaning is derivable from the parts.

Etymology

Gun worm is a corkscrew tool used on old guns. The twisted metal looked like a worm and was turned into the barrel to pull out a 'stuck charge', so the name came to mean that specific tool.