bayonet

bayonet

Short, sharp-edged, sometimes pointed weapon, designed for attachment to the muzzle of a firearm. According to tradition, it was developed in Bayonne, France, early in the 17th century and soon spread throughout Europe. The earliest design, the plug bayonet, was inserted into the muzzle of a musket, thus preventing the musket from being fired until the bayonet was removed. Later designs, including the socket bayonet invented by Sebastien Le Prestre de Vauban (1688), slipped it over the muzzle. Repeating firearms greatly reduced its combat value. By World War I it had become an all-purpose knife.

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bayonet

1. a blade that can be attached to the muzzle of a rifle for stabbing in close combat.

2. a type of fastening in which a cylindrical member is inserted into a socket against spring pressure and turned so that pins on its side engage in slots in the socket

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bayonet [¦bā·ə′net]

(ordnance)

An edged steel blade with a tapered point and a formed handle with an underhand grip, designed to be attached to the muzzle end of a rifle, shotgun, or the like for use in hand-to-hand combat.