assault rifle

Definition of assault rifle

: 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 Police said Tuesday that the attack was carried out by at least one suspect who was armed with what police called an assault rifle as well as handguns. — NBC News, "4 dead, at least 14 injured in suspected Vienna terror attack; shooter dead, others possibly at large," 2 Nov. 2020 Overnight, the price of an AK-47 assault rifle quadrupled from $200 to $800. — Scott Peterson, The Christian Science Monitor, "Why power-broker Hezbollah is still rocked by Beirut blast," 24 Aug. 2020 According to charges, Solomon roamed the riots carrying an assault rifle. — Andy Mannix, Star Tribune, "Court records, FBI contradict Trump's claims of organized 'antifa-led' riots in Minneapolis after George Floyd's death," 19 Dec. 2020 As the women dance and twirl in a generic suburban neighborhood, the man strums what appears to be an assault rifle like a guitar, a startling juxtaposition of child’s play and menace. — Carrie Battan, The New Yorker, "The Raw Sounds of Rico Nasty," 7 Dec. 2020 In September, Greene posted a photo of herself holding what appeared to be an assault rifle next to the images of Democratic Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib. — Michael Smolens Columnist, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Column: Pandering to the fringe," 18 Oct. 2020 One of the individuals in the video is seen firing dozens of shots with an assault rifle. — Robert Gearty, Fox News, "WATCH: NC police release video of deadly Juneteenth mass shooting," 15 Nov. 2020 Armed with an assault rifle, Rittenhouse walked up and down the downtown streets with little push back from local police. — Christy Gutowski, chicagotribune.com, "Kyle Rittenhouse cried, vomited and worried about social media as he told Antioch cops ‘I shot two white kids’," 30 Oct. 2020 Kenosha police records show 16 awards, letters or formal commendations, ranging from his calm demeanor during a welfare check to his actions surprising a suspect and seizing an assault rifle. — Ashley Luthern, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Commendations, three crashes and two citizen complaints: Inside the file of the Kenosha police officer who shot Jacob Blake," 13 Nov. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'assault rifle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

17 Jan 2021

Cite this Entry

“Assault rifle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/assault%20rifle. Accessed 19 Jan. 2021.

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