A hat-shaped metal machine, holding from 6 to 9 lbs. of gunpowder; it is firmly fixed to a stout plank, and being applied to a gate or barricade, is fired by a fuse, to break or blow it open. (See powder-bags.)
·noun A case containing powder to be exploded, ·esp. a conical or cylindrical case of metal filled w...
Webster's Dictionary of the English Language