# what does "pistol-whipped" mean? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 13, 2005, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356 "2005-03-13T18:13:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/1 "2005-03-13T18:13:12Z")
My Webster’s defines it as “to beat with a pistol”.But where did such an odd phrase come from? There’s no similar expression with other weapons or objects . No such thing as to “baseball-bat whip”, or to “brass-knuckle whip” , or “to blunt-instrument whip” , or “to rock whip” or “to 2 by 4 whip”. But people can be beaten to death with all those things. To me, saying ‘whip’ implies a device that is long and flexible (and, duh, whip-like, for lack of a better word) .Not a pistol. Today’s newspaper uses the phrase (in a story about the courtroom shooting in Atlanta) The criminal grabbed a policeman’s gun, shot several people, then “pistol-whipped” a reporter and stole his car. Why not say he “assaulted and beat a reporter”.? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/2 "2005-03-13T18:25:24Z")
Can’t offer too much help in the way of the OP, but according to [http://www.etymonline](http://www.etymonline), the first use of the term is recorded in 1942. As for why did a newspaper use that phrasing? Well, it’s a pretty common term that conveys what happened in the least amount of space. ---
**Author:** ![Jake4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bc8723/32.png) [@Jake4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake4)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/3 "2005-03-13T18:26:45Z")
Because the “preferred” method of using a baseball, brass knuckles, rock, 2x4, blunt instrument, etc., is to hit the person with it. Usually people shoot bullets at other people with guns. Hitting them with the pistol is a secondary use of the pistol. Likewise you’d specify if someone launched a baseball bat or a rock out of a cannon at someone. Not the primary usage. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Scott\_Plaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Scott\_Plaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scott_Plaid)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/4 "2005-03-13T18:31:02Z")
In the movies, and thus in real life, extremly stupid people are likely to hold the barrel in their hands, with the …um…place where the bullet fires pointing towards themselves. “Never point a gun at anything you do not wish to destroy.” Not very smart. They then bring the handle down on the back of someones neck. ---
**Author:** ![Mops](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mops/32/16494_2.png) [@Mops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mops)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2005, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/5 "2005-03-13T18:32:50Z")
Also I suspect the idea of being beaten with a pistol is inherently more frightening than the idea of being beaten with, say, a small rock of the same mass. Because of the implied threat of escalation to using the pistol’s business end. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2005, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/6 "2005-03-14T01:57:47Z")
It can also be pretty nasty by itself. You don’t have to turn the gun around; instead, you use it as a weight to smash you hand into the victim. ---
**Author:** ![Civil\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d78d45/32.png) [@Civil\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Civil_Guy)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2005, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/7 "2005-03-14T03:30:41Z")
Yeah, I can see why getting beaten with a pistol, any part of it, would be pretty scary. Still, I gotta agree that the “whipped” part of the phrase has always confused me. Uh, the mental picture I’ve always had is slightly more unpleasant: I’ve pictured a victim being bound and gagged, and having the perp use the gun sight on the pistol to cut up the victim’s face or other body parts. Is there any basis for this being part of the expression? Is it ever done? Often done? Ah, I’m probably just imagining things. Right? ---
**Author:** ![Scott\_Plaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Scott\_Plaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scott_Plaid)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2005, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/8 "2005-03-14T04:57:18Z")
Right. As I said, in movies, as thus by stupid people in real life, the handle is used like a blackjack. ---
**Author:** ![Kozmik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8dc957/32.png) [@Kozmik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kozmik)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2005, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/9 "2005-03-14T13:50:02Z")
There is a scene in the movie _The Arrival_, where Zane is confronted by a police officer. The officer approaches Zane with his gun pointed at him, and he keeps moving closer. Once he is “in his face”, he pistol-whips him (still holding the gun as if to shoot) by sharply whipping the barrel of the gun at the lower cheek. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2005, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/10 "2005-03-14T14:14:33Z")
I always imagined that the person administering the pistol whipping holds the gun normally (i.e., as if to shoot), and brings down the butt end of the gun the victim. The weight of the gun adds force to the blow. ---
**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2005, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/11 "2005-03-14T14:30:59Z")
> [@Scott\_plaid](#): > > Right. As I said, in movies, as thus by stupid people in real life, the handle is used like a blackjack. Then it’s not exactly whipping is it? _Lonesome Dove_\*, where Robert Duvall’s character Gus clobbers the surly bartender with his Colt’s Walker. A Walker weighs 3-1/2lbs unloaded and is about 16" long. Best movie pistol whipping ever. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2005, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/12 "2005-03-14T15:11:10Z")
According to my copy of **Kill or Get Killed** by Colonel Rex Applegate, the proper method of pistol whipping is to hold the pistol by the grip in the normal fashion and strike with the barrel or slide. There are some pretty graphic line drawings of a German soldier getting his face caved in with a 1917 revolver and with a 1911A1. Other sources indicate that in the Old West striking someone with a pistol was called “buffaloing” and that, once again, the barrel was the preferred part of the gun for impact. ---
**Author:** ![shelbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@shelbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shelbo)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2005, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/13 "2005-03-14T17:08:36Z")
I’ve never seen this in a movie (or in real life). All the scenes I’ve seen have been with the “whipper” holding the gun normally, and striking the “whippee” with the barrel, or the side of the gun. ---
**Author:** ![shelbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@shelbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shelbo)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2005, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/14 "2005-03-14T17:17:25Z")
Sorry, the “this” in the above refers to the “holding the gun by the barrel” form of pistol-whipping that Scott\_plaid seems to think is so prevalent. I’ve never seen that. ---
**Author:** ![critter42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ba0ec/32.png) [@critter42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/critter42)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2005, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/15 "2005-03-14T17:37:18Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > It can also be pretty nasty by itself. You don’t have to turn the gun around; instead, you use it as a weight to smash you hand into the victim. Having been pistol-whipped in just such a manner, I can say from experience that it is most effective. critter42 ---
**Author:** ![mittu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecd19e/32.png) [@mittu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mittu)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2005, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/16 "2005-03-14T17:52:33Z")
It is hard to imagine how you could whip someone with an object such as a gun, however, [www.dictionary.com](http://www.dictionary.com) offers the following description of ‘whip’: " To move in a sudden, quick manner; dart." So I guess in this case whipped simply refers to the speed of the motion rather than anything else. Here is a picture of another hollywood depiction of pistol whipping, in this scene from ‘Sneakers’ the victim is lying in the boot of a car and the camera shot is from the victim’s point of view. You can see the gun is being held like you would hold a rock or paperweight: [http://www.btinternet.com/~mittu/sneakers.jpg](http://www.btinternet.com/~mittu/sneakers.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Khampelf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Khampelf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khampelf)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2005, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/17 "2005-03-14T18:39:32Z")
It’s actually rather sad. Never seeing your friends anymore, or getting out much, because you have to ask your pistol if it’s OK first. [sub]What?[/sub] Just hope the shooting is worth it. ---
**Author:** ![ltfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@ltfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ltfire)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2005, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/18 "2005-03-15T00:21:24Z")
CHAPPACHULA …There’s no similar expression with other weapons or objects . No such thing as to “baseball-bat whip”, or to “brass-knuckle whip” , or “to blunt-instrument whip” , or “to rock whip” or “to 2 by 4 whip”. But people can be beaten to death with all those things… Pussy whipped comes to mind. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2005, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/19 "2005-03-15T06:51:53Z")
From my recollection of Wyatt Earp’s account of his life, he discussed pistol-whipping and fanning (where you use one hand to keep recocking the weapon.) His statement on pistol-whipping was that there is no point in holding the weapon any differently from how one regularly holds a gun. If you thwonk someone with a big hunk of metal it will hurt just fine–and holding correctly allows you to use the gun as intended after. Fanning he said wasn’t something anyone (with a brain) would ever do for real as it throws your aim off and–after practicing every day–you can recock your weapon quite fast enough regularly. -Chris ---
**Author:** ![critter42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ba0ec/32.png) [@critter42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/critter42)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2005, 8:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356/20 "2005-03-15T08:14:05Z")
> [@ltfire](#): > > CHAPPACHULA > Pussy whipped comes to mind. 😃 Again, like **Jake4** mentioned way back at the beginning of the thread, that would be a secondary use for said object… 😃 critter42 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-pistol-whipped-mean/294356.md?page=2)