/mus"kit/ , n.
1. a heavy, large-caliber smoothbore gun for infantry soldiers, introduced in the 16th century: the predecessor of the modern rifle.
2. the male sparrow hawk, Accipiter nisus.
[ 1580-90; mousquet moschetto crossbow arrow, later musket, orig. kind of hawk, equiv. to mosch ( a ) fly ( musca ) + -etto -ET ]