semiautomatic

adjective

semi·​au·​to·​mat·​ic ˌse-mē-ˌȯ-tə-ˈma-tik 

ˌse-ˌmī-, 

-mi-

: not fully automatic: such as

a

: operated partly automatically and partly by hand

b

of a firearm : able to fire repeatedly through an automatic reloading process but requiring release and another pressure of the trigger for each successive shot

a semiautomatic rifle

semiautomatic noun

semiautomatically

ˌse-mē-ˌȯ-tə-ˈma-ti-k(ə-)lē 

ˌse-ˌmī-, 

-mi-

adverb

Examples of semiautomatic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Restrictions were tightened almost 30 years ago after a lone gunman armed with semiautomatic weapons killed 35 people at the Port Arthur historic tourist site in the island state of Tasmania. —Helen Regan, CNN Money, 19 Dec. 2025

That bloodletting resulted in legislation that banned ownership of most automatic and semiautomatic rifles and drastically reduced the number of mass killings in Australia. —Matt Bradley, NBC news, 16 Dec. 2025

That incident led the Australian government to impose an almost total ban on all automatic and semiautomatic weapons. —Michael Collins, USA Today, 15 Dec. 2025

Cole also faces multiple weapons charges, after he was caught in possession of a semiautomatic Glock handgun with an extended magazine and a laser sight without a valid FOID card or concealed carry license. —Todd Feurer, CBS News, 15 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1853, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for semiautomatic

• antidemocratic
• bacteriostatic
• heterochromatic
• idiosyncratic
• nonadiabatic
• paleoclimatic
• achromatic
• acrobatic
• adriatic
• aliphatic
• antistatic
• aromatic