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DictionarycannonHeavy gun
noun

cannon

KAN-un/ˈkænən/

A large, heavy gun that fires projectiles.

The museum displays a heavy cannon on wooden wheels.

A historical cannon with large metal barrel on sturdy wheeled carriage, no firing and no people.
Etymology
cannLatinreed, tube
+onItalianlarge; augmentative

The reed or tube base, enlarged by the augmentative ending, gives the image of a “large tube.” That image names the gun through its barrel.

In context

Factory Secrets: How It's Made23:46
A10 uses a large drum magazine. It can hold over a thousand rounds. Inside the fuselage sits a massive drum where hundreds of 30 mm rounds are stored. When the cannon fires, the mechanism slowly rotates this drum.
How It’s Made: The $400 Per Gram Metal No One Can Cut

More examples

  • The fortress walls hold several old cannons.
  • Smoke rises after the cannon fires.
  • The crew loads a projectile into the cannon.

Forms

cannon · cannons

Similar words

gun
The broader term, including smaller handheld weapons.
howitzer
A type of artillery designed for relatively high-angle fire.