SEMIAUTOMATIC

[semi.au.to.mat.ic] adj (1890): not fully automatic: as a: operated partly automatically and partly by hand b of a firearm: employing gas pressure or force of recoil and mechanical spring action to eject the empty cartridge case after the first shot and load the next cartridge from the magazine but requiring release and another pressure of the trigger for each successive shot -- semiautomatic n -- semi.au.to.mat.i.cal.ly adv