bombard

1 of 2

noun

bom·​bard ˈbäm-ˌbärd 

: a late medieval cannon used to hurl large stones

bombard

2 of 2

verb

bom·​bard bäm-ˈbärd 

 also  bəm-

bombarded; bombarding; bombards

transitive verb

1

: to attack especially with artillery or bombers

2

: to assail vigorously or persistently (as with questions)

3

: to subject to the impact of rapidly moving particles (such as electrons)

bombardment

bäm-ˈbärd-mənt 

noun

Did you know?

In the late Middle Ages, a bombard was a cannon used to hurl large stones at enemy fortifications. Its name, which first appeared in English in the 15th century, comes from the Middle French bombarde, which in turn was probably a combination of the onomatopoeic bomb- and the suffix -arde (equivalent to the English ­-ard). The verb bombard blasted onto the scene in English in the 17th century, with an original meaning of "to attack especially with artillery"; as weapons technology improved throughout the centuries, such artillery came to include things like automatic rifles and bomber aircraft. Nowadays one can be bombarded figuratively in any number of ways, such as by omnipresent advertising messages or persistent phone calls.

Synonyms

Verb

• bomb
• attack

Choose the Right Synonym for bombard

attack, assail, assault, bombard, storm mean to make an onslaught upon.

attack implies taking the initiative in a struggle.

plan to attack the town at dawn

assail implies attempting to break down resistance by repeated blows or shots.

assailed the enemy with artillery fire

assault suggests a direct attempt to overpower by suddenness and violence of onslaught.

commandos assaulted the building from all sides

bombard applies to attacking with bombs or shells.

bombarded the city nightly

storm implies attempting to break into a defended position.

preparing to storm the fortress

Examples of bombard in a Sentence

Verb

The navy bombarded the shore.

Scientists bombarded the sample with X-rays.

The car was bombarded by rocks as it drove away from the angry crowd.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Kevin Dietsch | Getty Images Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who bombarded President Donald Trump’s signature spending bill for weeks, on Friday made his first comments since the legislation passed. —Chris Eudaily, CNBC, 4 July 2025

Life bombards us with stress, over commitments, responsibilities, and digital overload. —Gerry J. Tucker, Austin American Statesman, 2 July 2025

As a nurse, Agnes tended to victims in war zones bombarded by bombs that Sharpe’s company made—bombs that also killed Matteo’s family members. —Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 2 July 2025

Americans are bombarded with messages that suggest moving, such as walking, jogging, bicycling, and simply being more active, can lead to longer, healthier lives. —Borislav "bobby" Marinov, Forbes.com, 1 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English bombard, bumbard, borrowed from Middle French bombarde, probably from an onomatopoeic base bomb- + -arde -ard — more at bomb entry 1

Note: As with bomba, bombe, etc. (see note at bomb entry 1), the origin and diffusion of bombarda, bombarde, etc., remain incompletely elucidated. French bombarde, in reference to an engine of war, appears in the Vrayes chroniques of Jean le Bel, a history of the Hundred Years War begun in 1357 (see Dictionnaire du Moyen Français, online) and in the accounts of the Valenciennes city clerk Nicole de Dury from 1363 (see H. Caffiaux, Nicole de Dury, maître clerc de la ville de Valenciennes 1361-1373, Valenciennes, 1866, p. 103). Italian bombarda may be dependent on the French word, given that the earliest use of the word is in reference to artillery used at the battle of Crécy in 1346 (in the final book of the Nuova Cronica of Giovanni Villani, who died in 1348; manuscripts containing the final book are significantly later). The 1311 date given for bombarda in Trésor de la langue française, Cortelazzo and Zolli's Dizionario etimologico della lingua italiana, and a number of earlier sources from which they draw (as the Enciclopedia Italiana) is incorrect; the text in question, the Polystorio or Polyhistoria by Niccolò da Ferrara (not Bartolomeo da Ferrara), alludes to events of 1311 but was written sometime after 1367, when the chronicle ends, at the court of Niccolò II d'Este, marquess of Ferrara from 1361 (cf. Richard Tristano, "History 'Without Scruple': The Enlightenment Confronts the Middle Ages in Renaissance Ferrara," Medievalia et Humanistica, new series, no. 38 [2012], p. 85). Spanish lombarda, attested about 1400, is clearly a folk-etymologizing of bombarda (pace Coromines' etymology in Diccionario crítico-etimológico castellano e hispánico, which does not take account of the earlier French forms).

Verb

earlier, "to fire a large cannon," borrowed from Middle French bombarder, verbal derivative of bombarde bombard entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1686, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for bombard

• asgard
• backyard
• barnyard
• blackguard
• brickyard
• canard
• churchyard
• coastguard
• courtyard
• debarred
• diehard
• disbarred

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

Kids Definition

bombard

verb

bom·​bard

bäm-ˈbärd,

 also  bəm-

1

: to attack especially with artillery or bombers

2

: to attack forcefully or continuously (as with questions)

3

: to put under the force of rapidly moving particles (as electrons or alpha rays)

bombardment

-mənt

noun