Action – moving parts of a shotgun that allow it to be loaded, fired and unloaded (See Breech, Chamber, Trigger); or the part of the firearm that loads, fires and discharges the bullet; the five types are bolt, lever, pump (slide), semiautomatic and break (hinge)

Ammunition – any powder, shot, cartridge or shell used in a firearm

Barrel – tube that the bullet goes down when a firearm is fired

Barrel selector – determines which barrel of a double-barrel gun will fire

Bolt action – type of firearm that loads and unloads ammunition by working the bolt

Bore – interior diameter of a gun barrel, which will vary according to the gun’s design and intended use; size of the bore is indicated by the term gauge

Break action – a type of firearm that opens at the breech and shells are loaded by hand

Breech – end opposite of the muzzle or the end of the barrel nearest the stock

Butt – part of the stock that is held against the shoulder

Cartridge – round of ammunition that includes primer, powder, wad, case and bullet or shot; shotgun cartridges are centerfire (see Centerfire)

Centerfire – type of ammunition in which the primer is the center of the cartridge

Chamber – part of the action, at the breech end of the barrel, where the shot shell is placed

Choke (full, modified, improved cylinder) – part of a shotgun at the muzzle that controls the spread of the shot and its pattern; the degree of narrowing of the bore at the muzzle end of the barrel, intended to increase the gun’s range

Comb – side of the stock that fits against the cheek

Cradle carry – gun-carrying technique that involves cradling the barrel of the firearm in the bend of one arm and using the other hand to hold the small of the stock

Dominant eye – eye that sends more accurate visual information to the brain

Double-hand carry – gun-carrying technique that involves using both hands to carry the firearm (grip and forearm) and is considered the most stable

Elbow carry – gun-carrying technique that involves hooking the forearm over the elbow as the main support with the muzzle pointing at the ground

Firearm – tool which shoots a projectile by burning gunpowder

Forearm/Forend – part of the stock under the barrel

Full choke – tightest constriction of the bore, producing the greatest effective range

Gauge – interior diameter of the bore of a shotgun; the smaller the number, the larger the bore size; modern shotguns are 10, 12, 16, 20 and 28 gauges except for the .410 bore shotgun, which is actually a 67 gauge

Grip – narrow part of the stock held with the trigger hand

Improved cylinder – a good all-around choke less constricted than a modified or full choke

Lever action – firearm that loads and unloads ammunition by working the lever

Magazine – part of the repeating firearm that holds ammunition until it is ready to be fed into the chamber

Marksmanship – skill in placing a shot or hitting a target

Modified choke – moderate constriction or narrowing of the bore

Muzzle – end of the barrel from which the shot exits; smallest part of the barrel

Over-and-under – two-barrel shotgun with one barrel placed over the other; American version of the standard British game shooting gun

Pattern – concentration of shot measured in a circle at a given range, usually 30 to 40 yards

Pellets (shot) – small, round balls of lead or steel that are shot in a pattern

Primer – cap that sets fire to the powder when struck by the firing pin

Pump action – type of firearm that loads and unloads ammunition by pumping the forearm back and forth between shots

Recoil – kickback of a firearm when fired or the force with which the gun moves backwards into the shoulder when fired

Repeater – shotgun that holds more than one cartridge and can fire several shots before reloading

Safety (firearm) – device that, in the “on” position, should prevent the gun from firing; in many field guns the safety is automatically engaged when the gun is opened; in other guns, particularly competition grades, the safety must be manually engaged

Semiautomatic – action firearm that fires, ejects the spent cartridge and chambers a new cartridge with a single pull of the trigger; action in which gas from the shell’s burning gunpowder ejects the spent shell and loads another; noted for minimal recoil

Shot – round projectiles, usually of lead or steel; depending on shot size and load, a shell can contain 45 to 1,170 shot

Shotshell – shot and other parts of ammunition for shotguns packaged in a container or shell

Shoulder carry – gun-carrying technique that uses the shoulder as a support and a hand grip to secure it with muzzle pointing up

Side-by-side – a shotgun with two barrels sitting side by side; in Great Britain, the standard game shooting gun

Sights – parts of a firearm which help in aiming

Skeet (high house and low house) – shooting where clay targets are thrown to simulate the angled flights of birds; angles differ through eight shooting positions, and speed and target size are consistent

Sling carry – gun-carrying technique of hanging the firearm from one shoulder by a sling while gripping the sling at your shoulder with the hand on the carrying side; muzzle points up

Smoothbore – smooth part of the inside of a shotgun barrel as opposed to the rifled bore of a rifle

Sporting clays (walk-thru, tower, 5-stand) – shotgunning sport where clay targets simulate ducks, dove, quail, and/or rabbits; angles may vary throughout shooting stations and target sizes can vary

Stock – “handle” of the shotgun and held to the shoulder, comprising the butt, comb and grip

Trail carry – gun-carrying technique that involves gripping the stock with one hand with the muzzle pointing down

Trap (standard) – shooting sport where clay targets are thrown in a flight pattern in front and away from the shooter through five stations; targets are the same size and can veer left or right

Trigger – finger-pulled lever(s) that drives the firing point forward and fires a gun