/ ˈpɪstl; NAmE / noun
a small gun that you can hold and fire with one hand :
an automatic pistol
a starting pistol (= used to signal the start of a race)
—see also water pistol
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WORD ORIGIN
mid 16th cent.: from obsolete French pistole , from German Pistole , from Czech pišt'ala , of which the original meaning was whistle, hence a firearm by the resemblance in shape.