Word.ws English Dictionary

handloading

handloading noun: the loading of cartridges for firearms when it is done by hand and (especially) at home (in semi-homemade manner): assembling them from the individual components (e.g., casing, primer, gunpowder or other charge, and shot or bullet). Also the present participle and gerund of handload.

Noun

handloading (uncountable)

  1. The loading of cartridges for firearms when it is done by hand and (especially) at home (in semi-homemade manner): assembling them from the individual components (e.g., casing, primer, gunpowder or other charge, and shot or bullet).
    • With handloading of their practice rounds, they can save money, especially in light of how expensive the store-bought cartridges can be these days.
  2. The loading of a firearm, usually a pistol or rifle, by hand.
    Antonyms:
    autoloading

Also used as

handloading is also the present participle and gerund of handload.

Antonyms of handloading

Origin of handloading

By surface analysis, hand + loading. The verb (handload) is possibly a back-formation from the noun.

Questions about handloading

What does handloading mean?
Handloading means the loading of cartridges for firearms when it is done by hand and (especially) at home (in semi-homemade manner): assembling them from the individual components (e.g., casing, primer, gunpowder or other charge, and shot or bullet).
What part of speech is handloading?
Handloading is a noun.

Words near handloading in the dictionary

  1. handlists
  2. handload
  3. handloaded
  4. handloader
  5. handloaders
  6. handloading
  7. handloads
  8. handlock
  9. handlocked
  10. handlocking
  11. handlocks

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: handloading (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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