Home › Glossary › Letter G

Gatling gun

Military
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A rapidly firing gun with multiple rotating barrels. In poetry, it can suggest mechanical repetition, overwhelming force, and industrial violence.

Detailed Definition
The Gatling gun uses several barrels that rotate as the weapon fires, allowing sustained rapid fire in its original design. Its name carries the sound of an age when machinery began to multiply the speed and scale of killing. Poets may use it to create a harsh rhythm of repeated syllables, blows, or accusations. The weapon can also stand for systems that continue operating beyond individual intention, making violence seem automatic, efficient, and terrifyingly impersonal.
Example
Example in poetry:
The Gatling gun becomes a symbol of industrial violence when its barrels spin faster than thought; A poet might contrast the Gatling gun’s mechanical rhythm with a drummer’s human pulse; In a dramatic monologue, the speaker hears the Gatling gun as an engine that cannot mourn; The image of a Gatling gun can show how invention magnifies both power and destruction.
Additional Notes
A Gatling gun has several rotating barrels that permit rapid fire, making it distinct from a conventional single-barrel firearm. The name can suggest repetition, machinery, noise, and violence organized as a process. Poets may use its relentless rhythm as an image for industrial warfare, compulsive speech, or thoughts that arrive in punishing bursts.
Also Known As
Crank Gun
Skip to main content