the.com/shotgun
the wide-spread argument that doesn't need to aim, just needs to be near.
means A smoothbore firearm that fires a spray of small pellets, scattering its shot over an area rather than firing a single aimed bullet; also, by extension, the front passenger seat of a car.
from A 19th-century American coinage, simply 'shot' (the lead pellets) plus 'gun.' The front-seat sense comes much later, from the 'shotgun messenger' who rode beside the driver of a stagecoach in the American West, cradling a shotgun to fend off robbers — so calling 'shotgun' for the passenger seat is, quite literally, claiming the gunman's perch.
- front seat
- calling it dates to horse-drawn stagecoach guards
- spread
- fires many pellets, not a single bullet
- gauge math
- smaller number means bigger bore
- sawed-off
- shorter barrel widens spread, shortens legality
- weddings
- shotgun marriage implies a very persuasive father
combat shotgun m1014 — adopted by us marine corps in 1999, used in iraq and afghanistan
remington 870 — produced since 1950, most common police shotgun in america
benelli m4 super 90 — semi-automatic shotgun used by us military and law enforcement since 1998