: a dam placed in a watercourse to increase the depth of water or to divert it into a channel for navigation or irrigation
1
military
: artillery fire laid on a line (see line entry 1 sense 6c) close to friendly troops to screen and protect them
The enemy laid down a barrage of machine-gun fire as our platoon approached the bridge.
2
: a vigorous or rapid outpouring or projection of many things at once
a barrage of phone calls
unleashed a barrage of insults
an oratorical barrage
barraged; barraging
: to deliver a barrage (see barrage entry 2) against
were barraged with bullets
being barraged by campaign ads before the election
Examples of barrage in a Sentence
Noun (2)
the teacher's rapid-fire barrage of homework assignments went by too fast for me to write them all down
Verb
the star athlete was barraged with requests for an autograph
Recent Examples on the Web
Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2026
In the far south of Iran, more than 150 people were killed when a barrage hit a girls school.
—Eric Cortellessa, Time, 5 Mar. 2026
Jeff McMurray, Fortune, 3 Mar. 2026
We’re often barraged with a series of facts, dates and notable events, and the results can be dry as dust.
—Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 18 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for barrage
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Noun
Even some of its adherents were surprised Monday when the group launched a barrage of rockets and drones on Israeli positions across the border.
—Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2026
In the far south of Iran, more than 150 people were killed when a barrage hit a girls school.
—Eric Cortellessa, Time, 5 Mar. 2026
Verb
Residents of Syracuse, New York — America’s snowiest city — once barraged a service hotline with street neglect complaints during blizzards, even if plows had passed two hours earlier but the work was hidden by fresh snow.
—Jeff McMurray, Fortune, 3 Mar. 2026
We’re often barraged with a series of facts, dates and notable events, and the results can be dry as dust.
—Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 18 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for barrage
Cite this Entry
“Barrage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/barrage. Accessed 6 Mar. 2026.
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