'revolver' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'revolvere', where 're-' meant 'back' and 'volvere' meant 'to roll'.

'revolver' changed from the Latin verb 'revolvere' (via Middle English forms of 'revolve' and the agent suffix '-er') into English as 'revolver' meaning 'one that revolves'; in the early 19th century the term was applied to a handgun with a revolving cylinder and that sense became prominent.

Initially, it meant 'one that revolves' or 'a thing that turns', but over time it came to be commonly used for 'a handgun with a rotating (revolving) cylinder'.