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Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary bul·let \\ˈbu̇-lət also ˈbə-\\ noun USAGE often attributive
ETYMOLOGY Middle French boulette small ball & boulet missile, dims. of boule ball — more at bowl
DATE 1579
1. a round or elongated missile (as of lead) to be fired from a firearm; broadly : cartridge 1a2. a. something resembling a bullet (as in curved form) b. a large dot placed in printed matter to call attention to a particular passage3. a very fast and accurately thrown or hit object (as a ball or puck)• bul·let·ed \\-lə-təd\\ adjective
bullet 1557, from M.Fr
http://M.Fr . boulette dim. of boule "a ball," which in Modern Fr. has become the word for "cannon ball," from L. bulla "round thing, knob" (see bull (2)). Bite the bullet is first recorded 1891, probably with a sense of giving someone something to clench in the teeth during a painful operation.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary for Students of English Oxford Collocations dictionary for students of Englishbullet
noun ADJ. live | stray | explosive | plastic, rubber | .45 calibre, etc. | machine-gun, rifle, tracer VERB + BULLET fire, spray sth with The embassy was sprayed with bullets. | shoot (used of a gun) faster than a machine-gun can shoot bullets | be riddled with The body was riddled with bullets. | put They had put a bullet through his brain. BULLET + VERB hit sb/sth, shoot sb, strike sb/sth The second bullet hit her in the back. | miss sb/sth The bullet missed his heart by less than an inch. | enter sb/sth | kill sb | be lodged, lodge Surgeons are trying to remove a bullet lodged near his spine. | go, pass | fly across, around, etc. sb/sth, rip through sb/sth, smash/thud into sb/sth, whistle past sb/sth A stray bullet whistled past his ear. | bounce, ricochet The bullets ricocheted off the stones. BULLET + NOUN hole | wound | scar PREP. ~ from It is a bullet from the same gun that killed the Italian. | ~ in/through The second bullet hit her in the back. PHRASES a hail/volley of bullets They died in a hail of bullets. | a sniper's bullet She was shot through the head by a sniper's bullet. Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary-牛津双解-OALD7 ☞ bulletbul·let / 5bulit / noun a small metal object that is fired from a gun 子弹；弹丸: bullet wounds 枪伤 There were bullet holes in the door. 门上有弹孔。 He was killed by a bullet in the head. 他头部中弹死亡。 ⇨ see also magic bullet , plastic bullet , rubber bullet IDIOMS ⇨ see bite v.
Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged Search result show the entry is found in: bastard bullet tree , or tracer bullet , or bite the bullet , or bullet train , or dodge a bullet , or magic bullet , or silver bullet , or bullet bolt , or bullet catch , or bullet hawk , or bullet jacket , or bullet money , or bullet trap , or bullet tree , or bullet latch , or bullet-headed , or dodge the bullet , or expanding bullet , or frangible bullet
bul·letI. \ˈbu̇lə̇t, usu -ə̇d.+V\ noun( -s) Etymology: Middle French boulette small ball, small missile & boulet cannonball, missile, diminutives of boule ball — more at bowl 1. archaic a. : cannonball b. : a small round mass c. : a missile for a sling 2. : a missile (as of lead, steel, or lead with a steel casing) that is round or elongated and designed to be fired from a rifle, musket, or pistol; broadly : cartridge 1a 3. : something suggesting or likened to a bullet especially in form or vigor of action: as a. slang : an ace of a deck of cards b. : a hollow hemispherical iron shell filled with pitch and used to hold small objects during metalcraft tooling c. : a large solid dot so placed in printed matter as to call attention to a particular passage d. : a conical part or structure; especially : an electric lamp enclosed in a cone-shaped metal case that is usually supported by a flexible shaft e. : something (as a neutron) that can be bombarded against an atomic nucleus to induce fission II. adjective: relating to or resembling a bullet (as in form, in speed of action, or in producing a single impact) III. intransitive verb( -ed/-ing/-s) : to move fast < the car bulleted toward him >
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