Machine gun

A firearm that automatically fires multiple rounds while its trigger is held, using energy from firing or another power source to load the next round.

Recoil operation: A firearm action in which recoil moves the barrel or bolt to cycle the weapon. Some machine guns use recoil to extract a spent case and chamber the next round.
Automatic firearm: A firearm that uses energy from firing or an external source to cycle its action automatically. Machine guns belong to the broader family of automatic firearms.
Puckle gun: An early eighteenth-century weapon with a hand-operated revolving cylinder, patented by James Puckle in 1718. It illustrates an early attempt to increase firing speed before automatic mechanisms.
Light machine gun: A machine gun designed for portability and use by an infantry team, often with a bipod. It brings automatic fire closer to the maneuvering infantry unit.
Submachine gun: A compact automatic firearm that fires pistol cartridges and is designed primarily for close-range use. It is automatic like a machine gun but uses pistol ammunition and serves a different role.
Gas operation: A firearm action that redirects expanding propellant gas to move the mechanism and cycle the weapon. Many machine guns use tapped gas to drive the bolt through repeated firing cycles.
Cartridge (firearms): A complete ammunition unit containing a case, primer, propellant, and projectile. Each cycle feeds and fires one cartridge.
Maxim gun: An 1880s recoil-operated weapon developed by Hiram Maxim and widely regarded as the first practical fully automatic machine gun. Its recoil-powered cycle established the practical automatic machine gun.
General-purpose machine gun: A machine gun designed to serve in both infantry and vehicle roles, often with different mounts. It balances portability with sustained fire across multiple battlefield settings.
Assault rifle: A selective-fire rifle using an intermediate cartridge and a detachable magazine. It offers automatic fire but is designed as an individual rifle rather than a sustained-fire weapon.

Linked from 22 pages