Holster

//ˈhɒlstə(ɹ)// noun, verb

noun, verb ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A case for carrying a tool, particularly a gun, safely and accessibly.

    "Goring, like himself, had sprang forwards, first snatching a pistol from his holsters, and discharging it at him who seemed to be the chief of the party,—the man reeled and fell; but his fall was instantly avenged."

  2. 2
    a sheath (usually leather) for carrying a handgun wordnet
  3. 3
    A belt with loops or slots for carrying small tools or other equipment.
  4. 4
    a belt with loops or slots for carrying small hand tools wordnet
Verb
  1. 1
    To put something in a holster.

Synonyms

All synonyms
cartoncasecompactfile

Example

More examples

"Tom pulled his gun out of its holster."

Etymology

From Dutch holster (“pistol-case, holster”), from Middle Low German holster, from Old Saxon *holster, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *hulastrą, *hulistrą (“hull, case, covering”). Cognate with Old English heolstor (“a covering, veil, hiding-place”), Danish hylster (“pistol case, envelope”), Icelandic hulstur (“sheath”), Gothic 𐌷𐌿𐌻𐌹𐍃𐍄𐍂 (hulistr, “covering”). Compare German Halfter (“pistol case”). Related to hull, hele.

Related phrases

cock holster

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.