rapid-fire

adjective

rap·​id-fire ˌra-pəd-ˈfī(-ə)r 

1

: firing or adapted for firing shots in rapid succession

2

: marked by rapidity, liveliness, or sharpness

a comedian with a rapid-fire delivery

Synonyms

• rapid
• brisk
• quick
• fast
• galloping

Examples of rapid-fire in a Sentence

the witness stayed unruffled all through the prosecutor's rapid-fire questioning

Recent Examples on the Web

The questions kept coming at Tucker during a rapid-fire session with reporters at his locker that lasted less than five minutes. —Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025

Jamie Krenn, an adjunct professor of media, technology, and psychology at Columbia University, believes Newsom’s social media accounts reflect a broader political trend of embracing a mean social media meme culture, rapid-fire posts, and echoing Trump. —Barnini Chakraborty, The Washington Examiner, 19 Aug. 2025

Trump’s rapid-fire, improvisational, and utopian diplomacy complicate this process. —Michael Kimmage, Foreign Affairs, 19 Aug. 2025

Lee, working with a script by Alan Fox, spins out the multiple threads of action with startling swiftness and characteristically rapid-fire, confrontational dialogue. —Richard Brody, New Yorker, 15 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1890, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for rapid-fire

• acquire
• attire
• bonfire
• campfire
• ceasefire
• conspire
• desire
• enquire
• entire
• greenbrier
• gunfire
• homebuyer

Kids Definition

rapid-fire

adjective

rap·​id-fire

ˌrap-əd-ˈfī(ə)r

1

: able to fire shots rapidly

a rapid-fire weapon

2

: marked by a rapid rate or pace

spoke rapid-fire Spanish