Meaning & use
buck shot
Last updated
Meaning
noununcountabletechnical
large lead pellets fired from a shotgun, used for hunting large animals or for self-defense
Grammar: Uncountable: use 'some buckshot' or 'a shell loaded with buckshot'. The plural 'buckshots' is rare and nonstandard.
Patterns
- a load of buckshot
- loaded with buckshot
- buckshot wound
The farmer kept a shotgun loaded with buckshot for protection.
Buckshot is larger than birdshot and can travel farther.
The hunter used buckshot to bring down the deer.
Common combinations
- a load of buckshot
- He fired a load of buckshot into the air to scare the birds.
- buckshot wound
- The patient was treated for a buckshot wound in his leg.
- loaded with buckshot
- The old gun was still loaded with buckshot.
- buckshot size
- Buckshot size is measured by the diameter of the pellets.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
Commonly confused: buck shot or buckshot?
buck shot vs buckshot
This is the standard one-word spelling of the same word; 'buck shot' as two words is less common.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'buckshot' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Buckshot' is an uncountable noun, so it is used without 'a' or a plural -s: 'loaded the gun with buckshot'. Option 1 is wrong because 'a buckshot' treats it as countable, and option 3 incorrectly adds a plural.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “buck shot”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.