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point-blank (pointblăngk)
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adj.
1. Aimed straight at the mark or target without allowing for the drop in a projectile's course.
2.
a. So close to a target that a weapon may be aimed directly at it: point-blank range.
b. Close enough so that missing the target is unlikely or impossible: a point-blank shot.
3. Straightforward; blunt: a point-blank accusation.
adv.
1. With a straight aim; directly: fired point-blank at the intruder.
2. Without hesitation, deliberation, or equivocation: answered point-blank.

[POINT + BLANK, on the model of Middle French (de) pointe (en) blanc : de, from : pointe, sharp end, tip, outermost end (such as the place on a practice range from which an archer can shoot without compensating for gravity; from Old French pointe; see POINT) + en, in, into + blanc, white, bull's-eye, target (from Old French, white; see BLANK).]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.