hand cannon
In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.
Meaning · English
A very large handgun, often impractically so.
Register: slang
Where it’s used:
Used
American English
Examples
1994, Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary, Pulp Fiction
Vincent: "Did you forget that somebody was in there with a goddamn hand cannon?"
Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)
Sources & notes
Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).
Common questions
What does “hand cannon” mean?
A very large handgun, often impractically so.
Is “hand cannon” formal or informal?
hand cannon is generally slang.