peashooter

A child aims a peashooter at a target on a fence.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • A toy weapon: A "peashooter" is a small tube, typically made of plastic or metal, used to blow dried peas or small pellets through it by force of breath, often as a children's toy.
   • A metaphorical term: Informally, "peashooter" can refer to any small, weak, or ineffective weapon, such as a low-caliber firearm.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The children made a peashooter from a hollow straw and some dried peas. (A toy tube for blowing peas.)
  • The soldier joked that his rifle was just a peashooter compared to the enemy’s heavy artillery. (A weak or small weapon.)

Advanced Usage

• "Like a peashooter": Used as a simile to describe something that is small, weak, or ineffective.
  • Their arguments were like a peashooter against a tank — completely useless. (The arguments were very weak.)

Variants and Related Words

• Pea (n): a small, round, edible seed, often used in the toy.
  • He used dried peas as ammunition for his peashooter. (Small seeds used as projectiles.)
• Shooter (n): a device or person that shoots.
  • The peashooter is a simple shooter that relies on breath force. (A device that projects something.)

Synonyms

• Blowgun: a tube used to blow darts or pellets (similar principle, but often larger and used for hunting).
  • A blowgun is like a peashooter but uses darts instead of peas. (A comparable device.)
• Popgun: a toy gun that shoots a cork or pellet with a popping sound.
  • The peashooter and popgun are both classic children’s toys. (Similar playful weapons.)

Related Idioms

• "Not worth a peashooter": An informal expression meaning something is worthless or insignificant.
  • His opinion on the matter is not worth a peashooter. (His opinion is of no value.)
• "A peashooter’s chance": A rare or unlikely possibility, implying a very small chance of success.
  • He had a peashooter’s chance of winning the lottery. (Almost no chance at all.)