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rifle1

Pronunciation: /ˈrʌɪf(ə)l/

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Definition of rifle

noun

a gun, especially one fired from shoulder level, having a long spirally grooved barrel intended to make a bullet spin and thereby have greater accuracy over a long distance:a hunting rifle
(rifles) troops armed with rifles: [in names]:the Burma Rifles

verb

1 [with object] (usually as adjective rifled) make spiral grooves in (a gun or its barrel or bore) to make a bullet spin and thereby have greater accuracy over a long distance:a line of replacement rifled barrels

2 [with object and adverbial of direction] hit or kick (a ball) hard and straight:Ferguson rifled home his fourth goal of the season
[ 1940s: from rifle 'gun', suggestive of explosive speed; compare with the verb shoot]

Origin:

mid 17th century: from French rifler 'graze, scratch', of Germanic origin. The earliest noun usage was in rifle gun, which had ‘rifles’ or spiral grooves cut into the inside of the barrel

rifle in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of rifle in the US English dictionary

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