Meaning of portpiece | Babel Free

Definitions

a smaller cannon or gun mounted on the side of a ship. These were often used for close-range engagements or for firing at smaller targets.

Examples

“PORT-PIECE An ancient piece of ordnance used in our early fleets.”

“They fired 3½ lbs of powder against 3¼ lbs of the portpiece, an iron shot of 2½ lbs or a stone of 2¼.”

“A portpiece was a gun witn an internal barrel diameter of 5½in, and a chamber of 3½in.”

CEFR level