crossbow

Everyday

A weapon made of a small bow fixed across a wooden stock, which shoots short arrows called bolts when you pull a trigger. tree →

In the lessons

In history lessons about the Middle Ages, crossbows were powerful and easy to learn compared with longbows. In stories and games, characters hunt or fight with crossbows. Phrases: "fire a crossbow", "crossbow bolt".

Examples

• Medieval soldiers fired crossbows at the castle walls. tree →
• A crossbow bolt is shorter than an arrow. tree →
• Crossbows were slower to reload than longbows. tree →
• The museum had a crossbow from the 1400s. tree →
• Crossbows are dangerous weapons, not toys. tree →
• In ancient China, people also used crossbows. tree →
• Both portraits had many holes in them, because the baron's sons used the two old people as targets for their crossbows. tree →

Note

One word. Plural: crossbows. Its arrows are called bolts or quarrels. In many places it is illegal for children to own or use a crossbow.