Truemag

  • About
  • Guns
    • Guns 101
    • Early Firearms History
    • 19th Century Advancements
  • Ammo
    • Firing Method Evolution
    • The Bullet Cartridge
    • Bullet Sizes
  • Blog
  • Home
  • Contact
  • Glossary

Why Do We Aim for the “Bullseye”?

bullseye

Now that Sons of Guns is gone, I’ve been searching the TV guide for new shows to educate and entertain me. One of my new favorite shows is on my new favorite channel – H2 – called America’s Secret Slang with host Zach Selwyn. As a history buff I’ve always had an interest in word etymology – you know, where our words come from. The most recent episode touched on some romantic and intimate words such as Austin Powers favorite “shag”. You probably won’t believe which American president first used that term to describe, ahem, gettin’ familiar Adam and Eve style. No, it wasn’t Bill Clinton. But, I digress.

I’ve been pleasantly suprised by the origins of many of the words and phrases we use everyday. Many words in today’s English language have roots in everything from racial slurs to the military, movie industry, travel and – yes firearms. I should clarify that, by English, I mean the American-English we use. I thought I’d share a few here related to – or inspired by – firearms and the military. Hopefully you’ll find this as interesting and informative as I did.

Why do we try to hit the “bullseye”?

bullskullOddly enough, this one is actually pretty self-explanitory. Back in the days when the bow and arrow were the pinnacle of weapons technology, archers would test their skills by actually trying to shoot an arrow through the two eye sockets of a bull’s skull – hence they were aiming at the bull’s eye.

As weapons evolved, the term “bullseye” stayed around and is still what we say when we take aim today – whether with a bow and arrow or a AR-15.

Where did the “blank” come from when we shoot at “point blank range”?

Personally, I never even wondered where that term came from. When we shoot “point blank” we are shooting very close to our target. Why is that? I get the “point” part. We “point” our gun at a target. But what is the “blank” we are aiming at? This, too, comes from the days of archery. Anytime a projectile is fired, whether it’s an arrow, a bullet or a canon ball – the very second it hits the air it is being pulled down by gravity. So, when firing at a long distance, particularly with archery, you’re aim has to compensate for that – so you aim above the center of the target.

bullseye

Apparently in the middles ages, the center of archery targets – or the bullseye – was colored white. The word for “white” in French is “blanc”. So, when archers were close enough to the target whereby they wouldn’t have to compensate for gravity, they would aim for the white in the target. In other words, they would “point” at the “blanc”. So, “point blanc” evolved to “point blank”.

How did tanks get their name?

While most of us are familiar with the steel beasts that first entered combat during World War I, why exactly is an armored track vehicle with a cannon on it called a “tank”? Well, to learn the answer to that question we have to turn back the pages of history an entire century to what was known as “The Great War”.

tankIn the summer of 1914, more than a dozen nations began deploying armies throughout Europe in the opening months of World War I. Nations on both sides of the conflict cheered their young soldiers through city streets and sent them off to war. However, it wouldn’t take long before what was expected to be a glorious victory and show of power quickly turn into a quagmire of death in the trenches of France. Young men died by the thousands for mere yards of ground forcing generals, politicians and military strategists to eagerly search for some secret weapon that would turn the war in their favor.

While the idea of a mobile, armored platform had been discussed in the past, most of the top military brass didn’t think too much of its possibilities or even if such a weapon could be developed. In Britain, though, a young Winston Churchill – who was First Lord of the Admiralty at the time – thought the idea was worth exploring. He tasked a team of military minds to explore the possibilities of developing a weapon that was mobile, armored and could pack a punch.

Fearful that word of the project would reach enemy ears, a codename was needed to protect it. The team wanted to not only keep it quiet but wanted to confuse would be spies with misinformation. To that end, the team leaked information that suggested they were developing a mobile platform for carrying water on the battlefield and codenamed the project “tank” suggesting a large container of water. The codename, however, stuck even well after the first tank rolled onto the battlefield during the Battle of the Somme in September 1916.

So there you have it. A few phrases or words and where they came from.

 

Dec 23, 2014S. Lawrence
Gun Range Tragedy in Arizona Isn't About Politics or Blame14 Year Old Uses Grandfather’s Gun to Shoot and Kill 1 of 2 Home Invaders
Comments: 6
  1. Jim
    9 years ago

    Here’s a “Two-fer” (a double-origin)

    “Pass The Buck”

    1 – In the pioneer days of America, while playing poker pioneers would pass around a hunting knife and stab it into the table as a “marker” to indicate who was the current card dealer.
    Hunting knife handles were typically made from the horn of a buck… a “Buck Knife”… Hence “Pass the Buck”.

    2 – Saloon owners didn’t like their tables getting all cut up, so they eventually replaced the knife with a token. This token was often a silver dollar coin. This is how a dollar became known as a “Buck”.

    ReplyCancel
  2. Jim
    9 years ago

    “sincere”

    Craftsmen of ancient Greece chiseled statues out of marble.
    During their work, cracks sometimes developed.
    So they could sell their work at higher price, some shady sculptors
    filled the cracks with wax (“cera”).
    When the sun came out and light came upon their work, the wax
    often melted revealing the cracks and their dishonesty.
    Reputable sellers began advertising their statues as “sine cera”—“without wax.”
    This term evolved into the word “sincere.”

    ReplyCancel
  3. paul
    9 years ago

    the term “tank” refers to steam locomotives. the armored tank was developed in a locomotive works; along side the many small military engines used in ww1. also, the word “jeep” was slang for “general purpose” locos, many years before bantam vehicle.

    ReplyCancel
  4. {Lester|Leonard|Larry|Derek|Michael|Ryan|Elsie|Roger|Hector|Carl|Dave|Clinton|Jacob|Glenda|Daniel|Brett|Mitchell|Greg|Gretchen|Luis|Clyde|Antonio|Wayne|Travis|Corey|Jim|Jeremy|Mathew|Jeff|Gary|Evan|Joel|Jay|Henry|Rick|Jean|Harry|Stephen|Jennifer|Oscar|Kel
    9 years ago

    This was a wonderful post, thank you very much for the information!

    ReplyCancel
  5. ask
    9 years ago

    For most recent information you have to pay a visit world wide
    web and on web I found this site as a most excellent website
    for most up-to-date updates.

    ReplyCancel
  6. dranoid
    10 years ago

    Nice article ! Not too long and straight to the point, love it ! 🙂

    ReplyCancel

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

S. Lawrence
10 years ago 6 Comments Ammo, Blog, Educational, Guns, Historyarmy, etymology, H2, history, WWI10,208
Subscribe for Updates


 

Guns
  • Guns 101
  • Early Firearms History
  • The 19th Century – Great Advancements in Firearms
Recent Posts
3D Printed Guns
3D Printed Guns: Game Changer or Fad?
Gun Control - What Is It?
The New Gun Control Argument: What Does It Mean to Have More Gun Control?
school shooting
How To Stop School Shootings
Gun Safety 101
Gun Safety 101
Trump's immigration executive order
Trump’s Immigration Executive Order – Both Practical and Prudent
Recent Comments
  • Notification: SENDING 1,174911 BTC. Go to withdrawal > https://yandex.com/poll/7HqNsFACc4dya6qN3zJ4f5?hs=f8c42ab0cd11226867d1c60d9fb1103c& on Early Firearms History
  • + 1.374372 BTC.NEXT - https://graph.org/Ticket--58146-05-02?hs=ebc1beb868cd6f9abb5f0171ac29c409& on Semi Auto vs Full Auto
  • Ticket; Process 1.782337 bitcoin. GET => https://graph.org/Ticket--58146-05-02?hs=881579e5a3268883450eb851695f459d& on Gun Safety 101
  • Message: TRANSACTION 1,844261 bitcoin. Next =>> https://graph.org/Ticket--58146-05-02?hs=690bd8ebdca3d0dd90a18ce619322b23& on What is and is NOT an Assault Rifle
  • Notification; TRANSACTION 1,133953 bitcoin. Go to withdrawal => https://graph.org/Ticket--58146-05-02?hs=2f82e107da8fedfdfb22a775aee35256& on Battlefield 1 Review
Tweets by agunguy5
More Info
  • About This Site
  • Guns
  • Ammo
  • Firearms Glossary
  • What is Caliber?
Popular Categories
  • Guns Save Lives
  • In the News
  • Guns & Politics
  • Educational
  • Entertainment
Recent Comments
  • Notification: SENDING 1,174911 BTC. Go to withdrawal > https://yandex.com/poll/7HqNsFACc4dya6qN3zJ4f5?hs=f8c42ab0cd11226867d1c60d9fb1103c& on Early Firearms History
  • + 1.374372 BTC.NEXT - https://graph.org/Ticket--58146-05-02?hs=ebc1beb868cd6f9abb5f0171ac29c409& on Semi Auto vs Full Auto
  • Ticket; Process 1.782337 bitcoin. GET => https://graph.org/Ticket--58146-05-02?hs=881579e5a3268883450eb851695f459d& on Gun Safety 101
  • Message: TRANSACTION 1,844261 bitcoin. Next =>> https://graph.org/Ticket--58146-05-02?hs=690bd8ebdca3d0dd90a18ce619322b23& on What is and is NOT an Assault Rifle
  • Notification; TRANSACTION 1,133953 bitcoin. Go to withdrawal => https://graph.org/Ticket--58146-05-02?hs=2f82e107da8fedfdfb22a775aee35256& on Battlefield 1 Review
Most Viewed Posts
assault rifle
What is and is NOT an Assault Rifle
9 years ago
249,081 views
Something New I Learned About the Old .38 Special
12 years ago
62,755 views
Semi Auto vs Full Auto
9 years ago
57,435 views
2015 © The Firearms Guide