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But fully automatic firing is illegal on civilian firearms in both the United States and Canada (although some U.S. gun manufacturers have used loopholes to get pretty damned close). It’s also possible to own a fully automatic rifle in Canada if the gun has been “grandfathered” in as a result of having been owned prior to the 1978 legislation that deemed it a prohibited firearm.

However, generally the fastest firing rate of a North American gun is semi-automatic, meaning that a cartridge is automatically reloaded into the gun’s chamber after every pull of the trigger.

This is compared to a bolt, lever, pump or break action rifle, in which the cartridge must be manually loaded into firing position after every shot.

When activists and media refer to “assault rifles,” however, they are often referring to firearms like the AR-15; semi-automatic long guns bearing features originally designed for use in combat.

These features typically include a pistol grip, elevated sights and a thick barrel shroud to dissipate heat, all of which are designed to make the gun better at directing large amounts of fire.

Photo by Springfield Armory National Historic Site Archives, United States National Park Service

Their most signature feature, however, is that they are often painted all black, which is why these types of guns are often known in the shooting community as “black rifles”.

But the problem with the definition “assault rifle” is that it all too often focuses on aesthethics, and ignores a wide variety of guns without these features that can be just as deadly in a mass shooting scenario.