broadside

noun broad·side \ -ˌsīd \

Definition of broadside

1 a (1) :a sizable sheet of paper printed on one side

(2) :a sheet printed on one or both sides and folded

b :something (such as a ballad) printed on a broadside

2 archaic :the side of a ship above the waterline

3 a :all the guns on one side of a ship; also :their simultaneous discharge

b :a volley of abuse or denunciation

4 :a broad or unbroken surface

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broadside was our Word of the Day on 09/26/2017. Hear the podcast!

Recent Examples of broadside from the Web

Continuing her 50-stop campaign through the German heartland, the chancellor largely ignored Schulz—leaving his broadsides unanswered.

— patrick donahue, Bloomberg.com, "What We Learned on the German Election Campaign Trail: Week Two," 25 Aug. 2017
Sean Spicer was not agile enough to deal with such a barrage of questions that daily resembled the verbalization of a full broadside from an Iowa-class battleship.

— conrad black, National Review, "White House Shakeup," 1 Aug. 2017
In 2011 the BBC published a broadside by Matthew Engel, citing five common Americanisms, and inviting readers to send in their own least-favourite ones.

— The Economist, "Fears of British English’s disappearance are overblown," 20 July 2017
Trump also continued his broadside of the news media in his Sunday morning tweets, claiming without providing evidence that news agencies use phony unnamed sources in their stories.

— matt korade, CNN, "Trump defends Donald Trump Jr. in Sunday morning tweetstorm," 16 July 2017
Playing for a sellout crowd of 40,000-plus on a steamy summer night, the veteran four-piece attacked its 130-minute, hits-heavy set list with seasoned chops and an eye-popping broadside of pyro and visual effects.

— brian mccollum, Detroit Free Press, "Metallica electrifies Comerica Park with high-wattage show," 12 July 2017
The political history included on the 1820 broadside (see below) notes that a public backlash following the 1812 election led to passage of a new districting law.

— National Geographic, "The Map That Popularized the Word ‘Gerrymander’," 28 June 2017
That was followed by a fiery broadside from Constand's civil attorney, Dolores Troiani, who said the witness' claims were untrue.

— USA TODAY, "Bill Cosby trial Day 8: Jury resumes deliberations for a third day," 14 June 2017
Europe fired its first broadside at the City of London since the Brexit vote, making a grab for the U.K.’s vast clearing market.

— max colchester, WSJ, "Europe’s First Brexit Shot: It Wants Clearing Back From London," 13 June 2017

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

Did You Know?

What do sheets of printed paper and a ship's artillery have in common? Not a whole lot besides their broadsides. The printing and naval senses of broadside arose independently in the 16th century. Printed broadsides may have first been decrees intended for public posting, so they were necessarily printed on one side of large sheets of paper. Soon even matters printed on one side of smallish sheets were called broadsides - advertisements, for example, or the so-called "broadside ballads," popular ditties that people stuck on the wall to sing from. In the nautical sense, broadside was originally the entire side of a ship above the water - which is where the guns were placed. The further use of broadside to refer to firing of the guns eventually led to the figurative "volley of abuse" sense.

First Known Use of broadside

1591

Other Paper Terms

folio, palimpsest, quire, ream

broadside

adjective

Definition of broadside

:directed or placed broadside

a broadside attack

First Known Use of broadside

1646

broadside

adverb

Definition of broadside

1 a :with the side forward or toward a given point :sideways

turned broadside

b :directly from the side

the car was hit broadside

2 :in one volley

3 :at random

See broadside defined for English-language learners

Examples of broadside in a Sentence

The car was hit broadside.
one car hit the other broadside and crushed the passenger door

First Known Use of broadside

1786

broadside Synonyms

Synonyms

sideways, crabwise, edgeways [chiefly British], edgewise, sidewise

Related Words

aslant, indirectly, obliquely; laterally, sideward (or sidewards)

Near Antonyms

dead, direct, right, straight

broadside

verb

Definition of broadside

transitive verb

:to hit broadside

the car was broadsided

See broadside defined for English-language learners

Examples of broadside in a Sentence

His car was broadsided by a truck as he was driving through the intersection.

Recent Examples of broadside from the Web

The snowballing revelations about Donald Trump Jr.'s meeting with a Russian lawyer during last year's presidential campaign have broadsided the White House, distracting from its agenda as aides grapple with a crisis involving the president's family.

— the washington post, cleveland.com, "President Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin had undisclosed hour-long meeting at G20 Summit," 18 July 2017
WASHINGTON (AP) — The snowballing revelations about Donald Trump Jr.’s meeting with a Russian lawyer during last year’s presidential campaign have broadsided the White House.

— julie pace, The Seattle Times, "As Russia scandal touches his son, Trump privately rages," 11 July 2017
Two officers were riding in a marked police car west on Del Mar Avenue through the intersection of Newport Boulevard at about 11:30 p.m. Monday when a Chevrolet Suburban traveling north on Newport Boulevard ran a red light and broadsided them, Lt.

— hannah fry, Daily Pilot, "Costa Mesa officer injured when SUV hits his patrol car; DUI suspect arrested," 5 July 2017
Reed sped off and broadsided a Dodge Durango about half a mile away at 71st Street and Carpenter Avenue, prosecutors said.

— chicago tribune staff, chicagotribune.com, "Teen charged with reckless homicide for crash that killed woman in 2015," 29 June 2017
A 61-year-old man died early Sunday after his SUV was broadsided near Bonsall by a driver suspected of being drunk, a California Highway Patrol officer said.

— lyndsay winkley, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Man dies in T-bone crash with suspected DUI driver," 25 June 2017
Seven sailors had been missing following the 2:30 a.m. incident, in which a Japanese-chartered container ship named the ACX Crystal broadsided the USS Fitzgerald, caving in part of the destroyer’s starboard side.

— chas danner, Daily Intelligencer, "Several Sailors Found Dead After Collision of U.S. Destroyer and Merchant Ship," 18 June 2017
Ordogne was southbound on Westmoreland Road on the way to a call when he was broadsided by a white Chevrolet Silverado coming across the intersection.

— mitch mitchell, star-telegram.com, "Dallas police arrest suspect in hit-and-run collision that injured officer," 3 June 2017
Martinez said Ordogne was southbound on Westmoreland Road on the way to a call when he was broadsided by a white Chevrolet Silverado coming across the intersection.

— mitch mitchell, star-telegram.com, "Dallas police thank bystanders who helped officer injured in hit-and-run," 30 May 2017

First Known Use of broadside

1981

BROADSIDE Defined for English Language Learners

broadside

noun

Definition of broadside for English Language Learners

: a very strong and harsh spoken or written attack
: an attack by a ship in which all the guns on one side of the ship are fired together

broadside

adverb

Definition of broadside for English Language Learners

: with the side facing forward
: directly from the side

broadside

verb

Definition of broadside for English Language Learners

: to hit (a vehicle) very hard from the side

BROADSIDE Defined for Kids

broadside

noun broad·side \ ˈbrȯd-ˌsīd \

Definition of broadside for Students

:a firing of all of the guns that are on the same side of a ship

broadside

adverb

Definition of broadside for Students

1 :with one side forward

turned broadside

2 :from the side

I hit the other car broadside.

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See words that rhyme with broadside Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for broadside Spanish Central: Translation of broadside Nglish: Translation of broadside for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of broadside for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about broadside

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broadside was our Word of the Day on 09/26/2017. Hear the podcast!

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First Known Use of broadside

Other Paper Terms

broadside

Definition of broadside

First Known Use of broadside

broadside

Definition of broadside

Examples of broadside in a Sentence

First Known Use of broadside

broadside Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

Near Antonyms

broadside

Definition of broadside

Examples of broadside in a Sentence

Recent Examples of broadside from the Web

First Known Use of broadside

BROADSIDE Defined for English Language Learners

broadside

Definition of broadside for English Language Learners

broadside

Definition of broadside for English Language Learners

broadside

Definition of broadside for English Language Learners

BROADSIDE Defined for Kids

broadside

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broadside

Definition of broadside for Students

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