The two basic styles of firearm actions are single-shot and repeating.

• Single-shot firearms require the shooter to manually reload the firearm after each shot.
• Repeating firearms have the capacity to hold multiple cartridges or shotshells in a magazine, cylinder, or extra barrel, allowing multiple shots to be fired before needing to reload

These basic styles encompass various specific action types such as bolt- action, lever-action, pump-action, semi-automatic, break-action, and revolving action, which describe the mechanical means by which the firearm loads, fires, and ejects cartridges