noun
howitzer
HOW-it-ser/ˈhaʊɪtsər/
An artillery gun that fires shells along a high, curved path.
The howitzer’s barrel is elevated above its wheeled carriage.
Etymology
The ancestor houfnice named a catapult, another kind of projectile-launching weapon. In English, the name came to designate a cannon that fires shells at high angles.
In context
mounds of the great mine crater at Trescault. Directly ahead, the enemy gun flashes flare against the eastern night. Our own guns answer without strength. We pass a huge German howitzer, its heavy underframe incredibly twisted by a direct hit.
More examples
- The crew adjusted the howitzer’s elevation.
- The diagram showed the howitzer’s curved firing trajectory.
- A heavy howitzer stood on the training ground.
Forms
howitzer · howitzers