A
machine pistol is typically a
handgun-style,
magazine-fed, self-loading
firearm, capable of
fully automatic or
burst fire, and chambered for
pistol cartridges. The term is a literal translation of
Maschinenpistole, the German term for a hand-held automatic weapon firing pistol cartridges. While the dividing line between machine pistols and compact
submachine guns is hard to draw, the term "submachine gun" usually refers to
carbines designed for
automatic fire of pistol cartridges, while the term "machine pistol" usually refers to a weapon built up from a
semi-automatic pistol design. Machine pistols are generally more compact to be concealable and can be operated one-handed, while submachine guns are usually designed to be two-handed and tend to have longer barrels for better accuracy.