Carbine, << KAHR byn or KAHR been, >> is a short, light-weight version of the United States Army’s M16 rifle. It weighs about 7 pounds (3.2 kilograms), or about 3 pounds (1.4 kilograms) less than the M16. Carbines shoot much farther and more accurately than a pistol, but not as far as an M16. Carbines are used by soldiers who must fight from tanks, personnel carriers, or similar cramped spaces. The early carbines were short muskets. Carbines used during World War II (1939-1945) were gas-operated semiautomatic weapons similar to the Garand rifle (see Garand rifle ).
