Definition of blowgun in US English:

noun

• A primitive weapon consisting of a long tube through which an arrow or dart is propelled by force of the breath.

  Example sentences

  • ‘I've hunted successfully with ‘stick’ bows, blowguns, boomerangs, and slingshots.’
  • ‘One drew a small blowgun and fired small, poisoned darts at them.’
  • ‘Spaniards enlisted Choco Indians in the counteroffensive with their feared poison-dart blowguns from the Pacific lowlands of Colombia.’
  • ‘Just before he gets trampled, a gaggle of natives open fire with their blowguns and drop the ape-ette.’
  • ‘In addition to basketry, river cane is also used to make blowguns for some traditional hunters - who still use the weapons to kill small game, like squirrels - and for tourists, who buy them as souvenirs.’
  • ‘With instinctual ease, he snatched up his blowgun, loaded it with a dart and shot forth one of the poison-tipped projectiles.’
  • ‘But there was something odd about the way that first fellow held his hand when he headed over your way, and I've seen those little blowguns before.’
  • ‘She collapsed the blowgun into a tube as long as her hand and put it in her purse.’
  • ‘Leite used a blowgun and darts to sedate the dog for an hour while they fitted it with a radio collar and recorded identifying information - male, 18 pounds, slightly bigger than a gray fox.’
  • ‘They also craft blowguns and spears for hunting game.’
  • ‘This one is from Cleveland, where two fliers tried to carry on a blowgun with darts and a bullwhip.’
  • ‘But instead of pouncing on you, the stout yet nimble form leaps clear overhead - knocking the blowgun from your hands and bending it in half in the process.’
  • ‘Shamans say its very breath has power, and that the sound it utters when it gasps can send poisoned darts flying, as from a blowgun.’
  • ‘Boys are skillful with slingshots and blowguns in hunting small birds.’
  • ‘They use blowguns and darts dipped in a type of poison called curare, which instantly paralyzes an animal.’
  • ‘Dutch interest in monopolizing spice production in the East Indies led them to wage war against the Macassarese, whose weaponry included blowguns that shot poison-tipped darts.’
  • ‘The deadly poison ricin was stored, with a blowgun and darts, in a plastic bag in the family room.’
  • ‘She motioned to her sister, who removed a small blowgun from the pouch at her waist.’
  • ‘Oh well, until I start taking a blowgun to work with some strong tranquilizers, I guess they are just two of the sour points of the job I need to endure.’
  • ‘They are important to local people, who rely on various species for edible fruits, building materials, even the darts used with blowguns.’