assault rifle

noun

Synonyms of assault riflenext
: any of various intermediate-range, magazine-fed military rifles (such as the AK-47) that can be set for automatic or semiautomatic fire
also : a rifle that resembles a military assault rifle but is designed to allow only semiautomatic fire

Examples of assault rifle in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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About a mile and a half away from the shooting, police were seen investigating an SUV near 44th Street and Wolcott Avenue, where an AK-47-style assault rifle was lying on the ground nearby. Victor Jacobo, CBS News, 27 May 2026 There’s an encased AK-47 and a grenade in another area; in the magazine of the assault rifle, which is wrapped in $1 bills, are items humans kill for, such as cocaine, diamonds, and gold. Sean Gregory, Time, 26 May 2026 So, her strategy shifts to polite requests, and then more foreboding scenarios where her lawyer calls his security contacts — the kind who carry assault rifles over their back. David Katz, IndieWire, 20 May 2026 The two teenagers who walked into a San Diego mosque with assault rifles on Monday wore patches displaying the Black Sun—a neo-Nazi iteration of the swastika—and had scribbled white-supremacist symbols in white correction fluid on their guns. Ali Breland, The Atlantic, 20 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for assault rifle

Word History

First Known Use

1950, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of assault rifle was in 1950

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Cite this Entry

“Assault rifle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/assault%20rifle. Accessed 2 Jun. 2026.

Kids Definition

assault rifle

noun
: any of various especially automatic rifles designed for military use

called also assault weapon

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