Which term describes a weapon malfunction that occurs when the cartridge fails to feed into the chamber?

• A. Failure to feed
• B. Failure to eject / Stovepipe
• C. Follow through
• D. Evasion

Answer: (A)

The concept tested here is feeding malfunctions in semi-automatic firearms. When the next cartridge in the magazine does not move into the chamber as the slide cycles, the weapon experiences a failure to feed. This means the gun cannot chamber a round and therefore cannot fire until the issue is resolved, often due to problems with the magazine, weak springs, dirty feed lips, or an improper magazine seating.

For context, another common issue is a failure to eject or a stovepipe, where the spent cartridge doesn’t exit the chamber properly and gets stuck in the ejection port. Follow-through refers to continuing to track the target or manage the trigger after a shot, not a mechanical problem. Evasion is not a firearm malfunction term at all; it relates to avoiding or escaping rather than a feeding issue.

So, the condition described—cartridge not moving from the magazine into the chamber—is failure to feed.