Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Howitzer

Howitzer , noun

[German haubitze, formerly hauffnitz, Bohem. haufnice, orig., a sling.]

(a)
(Military) A gun so short that the projectile, which was hollow, could be put in its place by hand; a kind of mortar.
(b)
(Military) A short, light, largebore cannon, usually having a chamber of smaller diameter than the rest of the bore, and intended to throw large projectiles with comparatively small charges. [Obsolete]