noun · verb · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
Received-Pronunciation:/ˈblʌn.dəˌbʌs/
General-American:/ˈblʌn.dɚˌbʌs/
General-American:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Australia:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
1
noun
Meaning 1
An old style of muzzleloading firearm and early form of shotgun with a distinctive short, large caliber barrel that is flared at the muzzle, therefore able to fire scattered quantities of nails, stones, shot, etc. at short range.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
verb
Meaning 2
To shoot with a blunderbuss.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
a short musket of wide bore with a flared muzzle
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: musket
History
Etymology
From Dutch donderbus (“blunderbuss”, literally “thunder gun”), which was altered under the influence of blunder.
Across languages
Translations
37 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Armenian:
բլանբերզում
(blanberzum)
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Catalan:
trabuc
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Chinese Mandarin:
雷筒
(léitǒng)
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Chinese Mandarin:
雷管
(léiguǎn)
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Danish:
espingol
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Dutch:
donderbus
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Esperanto:
blunderbuzo
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Finnish:
väkipyssy
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
French:
tromblon
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
French:
espingole
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Galician:
trabuco
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Georgian:
მუშკეტი
(mušḳeṭi)
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
German:
Espingole
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
German:
Donnerbüchse
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Greek:
τρομπόνι
(trompóni)
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Ido:
eskopeto
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Ido:
funelofusilo
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Indonesian:
pemuras
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Irish:
mór
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Irish:
mothar
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Italian:
spingarda
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Italian:
trombone
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Japanese:
ラッパ銃
(rappa jū)
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Korean:
나팔총
(napalchong)
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Malay:
pemuras
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Norwegian:
muskedunder
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Polish:
garłacz
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Polish:
gardłacz
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Polish:
szturmak
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Polish:
tromblon
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Portuguese:
bacamarte
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Russian:
мушкето́н
(mušketón)
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Spanish:
trabuco
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Swedish:
muskedunder
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Tajik:
бештар
(beštar)
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Turkish:
alaybozan
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
Ukrainian:
мушкетон
(mušketon)
— old style of firearm with a distinctive large opening at the muzzle
