assault rifle
noun
: 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
Investigators say Sanford drove his truck into the church on McCandlish Road and exited his truck, firing several rounds from an assault rifle at churchgoers before setting the church on fire.
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Julia Avant, CBS News, 21 Jan. 2026
The action sequences can get a bit weird, where at one point, the house just got blasted with hundreds of rounds from assault rifles, and the follow-up response to that is members of the team going outside and walking down an empty street, entirely exposed to any assailants.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 17 Jan. 2026
The higher figures come from limited eyewitness testimony, who report Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps security forces mowing down largely unarmed protesters with heavy machine guns and assault rifles.
—Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 13 Jan. 2026
Cowan blew up a watermelon with an assault rifle in one ad.
—Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 5 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for assault rifle
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Julia Avant, CBS News, 21 Jan. 2026
The action sequences can get a bit weird, where at one point, the house just got blasted with hundreds of rounds from assault rifles, and the follow-up response to that is members of the team going outside and walking down an empty street, entirely exposed to any assailants.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 17 Jan. 2026
The higher figures come from limited eyewitness testimony, who report Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps security forces mowing down largely unarmed protesters with heavy machine guns and assault rifles.
—Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 13 Jan. 2026
Cowan blew up a watermelon with an assault rifle in one ad.
—Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 5 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for assault rifle
Cite this Entry
“Assault rifle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/assault%20rifle. Accessed 24 Jan. 2026.
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