noun
- a small bomb used to blow up gates and walls
Usage: historical; military
Examples
- The soldiers used a petard to breach the castle gate.
- Medieval armies employed petards in siege warfare.
- The phrase ‘hoist with his own petard’ comes from Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
- Engineers placed the petard against the fortress wall.
- The petard exploded, creating a hole in the fortification.
- Historical accounts describe petards as dangerous weapons to handle.