Glossary

One complete round of ammunition which includes the case, the primer, the powder and the bullet.

Any rifle with a barrel shorter than 16 inches is considered to be a carbine.

A shooting term meant to indicate tilting of the firearm to one side, so that the grip is no longer vertical, but slanted in relation to the ground.

This is a groove or indentation around a bullet that permits the cartridge casing (brass) to be crimped tightly against the bullet to hold it firmly inside of the casing.

The caliber of a gun refers to the diameter of the inside of the gun’s barrel, also known as the bore. The caliber determines the ammunition size that the gun can fire. It is measured in fractions of an inch (.45 caliber) or in millimeters (9 mm).

Bullet diameter, can be in inches or metric. Example – .357 cal is .357 inches in diameter; 9mm is the metric designation.

The base of the grip and backstrap on a handgun and the rearmost portion of the stock on a rifle or a shotgun (the part that braces against the shooter's shoulder).

A rifle configuration in which the action and magazine are located behind the trigger. This allows for a firearm smaller than your typical rifle without sacrificing barrel length.

A type of backstop that catches the fired bullet and prevents it from leaving the area. These are most commonly used for indoor shooting ranges.

This is the metal projectile portion of a cartridge or round that is propelled through a gun’s barrel to hit a target. A bullet is generally cylindrical in shape with one rounded end.

Often used for hunting large animals, this is ammunition for shotguns that have medium or large pellets that burst when fired. Buckshot pellets are around .24” in diameter, creating a bigger impact on the target. For hunters, that means a buckshot has the intensity to kill the animal quickly.

A box of ammunition that is roughly equal in size (and possibly weight) to an actual brick.

This is the portion of a gun’s barrel behind the bore. Depending on the model, a gun’s breech may contain the chamber or just the back of the barrel.

As in trigger break, which is the point at which the trigger allows the hammer to fall, releasing the striker and firing the shot.

A shooter's term for empty shell casings, as most shells are made of brass or have brass in them.