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For those new to shooting and those in the community that are unsure about a few key shooting terms. We have written an alphabetical glossary to help make shooting less intimidating and help more individuals understand the jargon.
Action – The mechanism by which a gun is loaded, fired and unloaded
Airgun or Air Rifle – A pistol or rifle that uses compressed air as a propellant.
Antlers – Branched horns on the head of a male deer.
Back Gun – A Gun positioned behind the front line of guns. Normally put in place when a high number of birds are expected over a certain area.
Bag – The total number of birds or animals shot in one day.
Bag or Bag Limit – The agreed number of game birds that guns can shoot in one day.
Barrel – The tubes of the gun where the ammunition is shot
Beaters – A group of people employed to raise game birds for shooting by striking at the ground and cover crops with sticks, by waving flags and calling out.
Bolt Action – A type of action that uses a manually-operated bolt to unload and load a gun.
Bore or gauge – Interior diameter of the barrel of a gun. The most common of which are a 20gauge/bore shotgun and a 12gauge/bore shotgun
Brace – The term used for a pair of shot quarry. I.e. A brace of pheasants = two pheasants usually tied together with string around the necks.
Breech – The end of the barrel nearest the shooter where a bullet, cartridge, or pellet is loaded.
Cannelure – A groove or indent around the base of a cartridge case where the extractor takes hold. Bullets also have cannelures to enable them to be crimped into the case
Cartridge – A casing containing a charge and a bullet or shot, for small arms or an explosive charge for blasting. You fire a cartridge in a shotgun.
Cast – The angle of the stock to the centre line of the bore, which enables the shooter’s eye to line up, with the centre line of the bore
Centrefire – A cartridge with a primer placed in the centre of the cartridge – suited to high power ammunition
Chamber Length – Chamber lengths in shotguns are usually 2½, 2¾ or 3 inch (65, 68, 70 and 76mm). You will need to know the chamber length of your gun before buying cartridges – if you use the wrong size you can seriously injure yourself and damage your gun.
Choke – Chokes are fitted to gun barrels to restrict the width which helps to focus the shot on the target.
Clay pigeon/clay – A disc thrown into the air as a target for shotgun competitions or practice.
Clipped – When a game bird has been hit by a gun and is injured but not killed. This is why gundogs are a crucial part of the team on shoot days.
Close Season – Specific times of the year when it is illegal to shoot different quarries, this allows them to move to new grazing grounds, nest and produce their young.
Code of practice – A set of rules which the shooting industry uses to regulate behaviour.
Cover – Cover can be woodland, hedgerows or specific crops such as ‘cover crops’, maize, kale or mustard which attract game.
Cull – To kill selectively to maintain the health of the herd. Especially the older and weaker animals.
Decoy – A dummy bird used to help lure woodpigeons, geese or other pests within range of the shooter.
Deer Stalker – A person who approaches or follows deer without being noticed in order to shoot selected animals.
Deer Stalking – Refers to the hunting of all species of deer either by ground stalking or shooting from pre-positioned stands on the edge of fields and forests.
Dominant Eye – This is the stronger eye and is usually the eye a person would favour when looking down a telescope.
Drive – The process of the Gamekeeper and Beaters ‘driving’ game birds towards the Guns.
Driven Shooting – Game birds driven by the Gamekeeper and Beaters towards the Guns.
Ear Defenders – Plugs or cans that are vital to protect the shooter’s hearing when firing a shotgun or firearms.
Ejector – A mechanism that removes the cartridge from the breech of the gun after firing. Automatic ejectors are common in guns but not always.
Elevenses – Morning tea break usually taken after the first or second drive. Usually consists of soup, sausages or savoury game pies washed down by Sloe Gin or/and champagne.
Fibre Wad – This separates the powder from the shot in the cartridge and pushes the shot down the barrel after the powder has ignited. Made from wood fibre, it is biodegradable unlike a plastic wad
Ferreting – Ferrets are put down rabbit warrens to make the rabbits bolt outside into a waiting net. Used as a form of pest control, the rabbits are then shot immediately or dispatched humanely with a priest
Firearms Certificate – A licence that’s is legally required in order to own firearms.
Firing Pin – A small pin that strikes the metal primer of a cartridge to ignite the powder which then explodes, pushing the bullet or pellets out of the barrel.
Fixed Sights – These are iron sights mounted on the rifle’s barrel. Can also be referred to as Open Sights.
Flight – The movement of pigeons or wildfowl at dawn and dusk between resting and feeding areas.
Flight pond – A body of water which wildfowl drop to feed and roost.
Flightline – The path in the sky taken by birds to move between nests and feeding locations.
Flush – To rouse game.
Flush Point – The point on a drive where the game birds meet before being roused and flushed into the air towards the guns.
Full Metal Jacket – The copper cover of a lead bullet which allows the bullet to be driven up the barrel faster than a pure lead bullet.
Game – Species of wild animals and birds designated in law which can be hunted for sport and food.
Gamekeeper – A Gamekeeper is employed by a Shoot to raise the young game birds to maturity, manage the shoot environment to ensure the birds remain safe from predators and disease and to keep the birds within the boundaries of the shoot. On shoot days, the Gamekeeper directs the Beating team and is an extremely key member to the successful running of the day.
Gillie / Ghillie – A guide who accompanies guests for fishing, fly fishing, hunting, or on a deer-stalking expedition.
Group Size / Grouping – The measurement of the pattern of shots on a target for rifles and pistols.
Gun – A firearm. When spelt with a capital G, this refers to the person using the shotgun.
Gun Fit – The term used to fit a shotgun or rifle to an individual shooter’s body. Having correct gun fit can increase accuracy and minimize the effect of recoil on the shooter.
Gundog – Specially bred and trained dog which helps in locating, flushing and retrieving game birds.
Hanging – To suspend meat so that the flavour matures.
Hide – Somewhere a shooter conceals themselves to blend in with their surroundings usually during pest control.
Lamping – Shooting pests and predators at night using a powerful spot lamp.
Leading – When the lands and grooves in a rifled barrel ‘gunk up’ from bullets or airgun pellets which can affect accuracy.
Left and Right – This is the term used when you successfully kill a bird with each barrel, in quick succession. A fantastic achievement for any shooter.
Leg Down – When a bird has been shot at in the leg but not killed.
Let-off – The point where the sears release the shot in a trigger mechanism.
Load – The number of pellets packed into a cartridge. Measured in grams. The higher the load the heavier the recoil.
Load – Also, to put a cartridge in a firearm. To ‘load’ a gun.
Lock – The mechanism that fires the gun when the trigger is pulled.
Lock time – The time taken from the release of the sear by the trigger to the moment the primer is struck.
Lock, stock and barrel – The three main parts of a shotgun.
Magazine – Part of a rifle that stores ammunition ready for the next shot.
Muzzle – The end of a barrel.
Muzzle Velocity – The speed at which a bullet or pellet leaves the barrel.
No-bird – Used in clayshooting, a referee will call this if the target breaks on leaving the trap, or if the flight path is clearly different to those previously thrown.
Objective Lens – The lens nearest the object being viewed on a telescopic sight.
Ocular Lens – The lens nearest the shooter’s eye on a telescopic sight.
Open season – Also known as the shooting season, these are dates during which quarry species may be shot legally.
Open sights – Non-telescopic sights, sometimes called iron sights.
Over – Shouted by the beaters to guns when a bird takes off towards the guns.
Over-and-under – A shotgun where one barrel is on top of the other.
Over-travel – The amount of movement on the trigger after the sear has been released
Parallax – This occurs when the target image does not fall in the same optical plane as the reticle.
Peg – Where the Guns stand waiting to take a shot at the quarry. Each peg is given a number. Guns will randomly choose a number/peg at the start of the day. Depending on the shoot and the number of guns, guns are required to move up or down 3/4 pegs each drive.
Pellet – Sometimes called a slug, it’s a projectile made of lead used in an airgun, which is usually shaped like a tiny shuttlecock.
Pest – Animal that damages crops or wildlife, or represents a threat to health.
Picking Up Team or Pickers Up – Gundog handlers who pick up all the birds shot throughout the day.
Picking-Up – The act of gundogs and their handlers collecting fallen game and tracking down wounded birds to dispatch them humanely.
Plinking – Informal target shooting with an airgun
Plucking – The removal of feathers from a bird.
Poacher – A person who illegally kills or takes game belonging to another person without permission.
Poaching Birds – When a Gun shoots a bird that was in the arc of another neighbouring Gun. Considered very bad form.
Predator – An animal which hunts for food.
Prey – An animal hunted by another for food.
Pricked – See clipped.
Priest – An instrument used to dispatch injured game humanely.
Primer – A small charge fitted to ignite the main charge in a cartridge.
Proof – The process of checking that that a firearm is safe. Normally carried out by firing a special test cartridge that exceeds the gun’s tolerances by 30%.
Proof Mark – The mark that proves the gun is safe and has passed proof.
Quarry – The target of your shot – which may be a clay pigeon, a game bird, a rabbit, vermin or a deer.
Rearing and releasing – Breeding game birds for release into the wild.
Recoil – The rearward movement of a rifle or shotgun when it is fired
Refuge – A safe haven for wildlife.
Reloading – Refilling empty cartridge cases so they can be used again for economy and in the hope of increasing accuracy
Reticle – The crosshairs on a telescopic sight
Rifle – A type of gun where the barrels are rifled, marked with grooves that make the bullet spin. This causes the bullet to go further and hit more accurately. This makes them a good choice for killing quarry at a distance.
Rough Shooting – Involving a very small number of guns and gun dogs for flushing the game. Rough shooting is often carried out on the fringes of farms or estates that are not normally included in driven shooting drives.
Runner – A bird that has been wounded but is still able to run and hide once it lands.
Semi-automatic – A shotgun where cartridges are placed into a magazine which automatically loads the cartridges into the waiting chamber
Sear – Part of the trigger mechanism that holds the hammer, striker, or bolt back until the correct amount of pressure has been applied to the trigger.
Shoot Captain – The person in charge of the day’s shooting and in particular, the conduct of the Guns and their firearm safety. Duties include welcoming Guns, drawing pegs, delivering a H&S briefing, discussing etiquette and conduct with the guns and advising the Guns about the nuances of the various drives they will encounter.
Shoot Lunch or Dinner – A 2 or 3 course meal either lunch or dinner for Guns on shoot days.
Shooting – Refers to the shooting of game birds such as grouse, partridge, pheasant, woodcock and snipe.
Shooting Lodge – A small country house or purposely constructed room specifically used for shooting parties, lunches and dinners.
Shot – The lead or steel pellets contained in a shotgun cartridge. It is often used to refer to the person using a gun.
Shotgun – A gun with single or double barrels and fires shot contained in cartridges.
Shotgun Certificate – By law if you own a shotgun then you need to be in possession of a valid shotgun certificate.
Side-by-side – A shotgun where the barrels are placed side by side
Simulated Game Day – “Sim Days” follow the format of traditional driven game shooting but substitute clay pigeons for game birds. Sim Days usually have four/five drives and are more relaxed in shooting etiquette than driven shooting days.
Skeet – A shooting discipline where participants shoot at clay targets released by traps from two fixed stations from a variety of angles.
Snapcap – An inert cartridge used to release the tension on the firing pin spring of a shotgun.
Stalker – Somebody who tracks animals to shoot. i.e. Deer
Stand One – Walk One – Guns alternate drives between standing on peg and shooting the birds driven towards them with beating the birds towards the guns.
Stock – The part of the gun that rests against your shoulder. Usually made of wood, laminate or plastic.
Struck-off – The final stage of shotgun barrel finishing, where they are brought to an elegant taper and smoothed.
Sustainable harvest – This is the amount which can be shot without detriment to the population as a whole. Such as deer etc.
Syndicate – Group of people who shoot together, sharing the costs of a day or season shooting.
Telescopic sight – A small telescope that magnifies the target.
Tipping – At the end of a days shooting it is customary for the Guns to tip the Gamekeeper. This is often done discreetly whilst shaking hands.
To Wipe Someone’s Eye – A term used when a Gun gets the better of another Gun such as when a Gun has missed their bird and a neighbouring gun shoots it.
Trap – A machine which throws up clay pigeons for Guns to shoot.
Trigger blade – Device operated by the shooter’s finger that operates the trigger system which fires the gun.
Trigger mechanism – The device that uses sears to release the firing pin or release the mechanism of an airgun to fire the shot.
Trophy (head) – A head or full body of an animal or bird which is preserved for display by a taxidermist.
Tweeds – The traditional dress for game shooting in the UK.
Twelve bore – The diameter of a gun’s barrel; for shotguns this varies between a 28 bore (the smallest) and a four bore (the largest) The most common size for sporting shooting is a twelve bore.
Unders and Overages – The syndicate should shoot an agreed number of birds during a days shooting. Most shoots will allow a few extra birds over the agreed limit at no extra cost.
Vermin – See Pest and Predator.
Wad – Packing that keeps the shot in position in the cartridge. Can be made from plastic, fibre or felt.
Wad cutter – A flat-nosed bullet or pellet used for target shooting as they produce neat holes on the target
Walked-up shooting – A form of shooting where the shooter flushes the quarry, usually with a dog, as they walk through cover.
Wildfowler – A person who shoots ducks and geese.
Wildfowling – The hunting of ducks, geese and water birds.
Windage – The correction of the affect of wind.
Winged – See clipped.
Wood Pigeon Shooting – Wood Pigeons are one of agriculture’s biggest pests, causing millions of pounds of damage to crops each year. They are a challenging bird to shoot thanks to their keen eyesight and a heightened sense of awareness, therefore pigeon shooting is a popular sport for shooters. Wood Pigeon is also tasty game meat and can be used in a variety of ways from pies and casserole to a traditional roast.
Young Shots – Guns under the age of 18 years old.
Zero – The range at which the point of aim and the point of impact coincide.
Zoom – The magnification of a scope.
Written by The Country Girls UK team xx
