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

Carter also faces two counts of committing assault with a semiautomatic gun upon a peace officer. — Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 26 Aug. 2026

Prosecutors say one of the weapons used in the shooting was a semiautomatic firearm modified to function as a machine gun. — Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 26 Aug. 2026

He was taken to the Alameda County Juvenile Justice Center in San Leandro and booked on charges of residential burglary and felony assault with a semiautomatic firearm. — Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 24 Aug. 2026

While the lawsuit filed this week deals with bans on popular handguns, a pair of lawsuits dealing with bans on some semiautomatic rifles is set to be heard by the Supreme Court in its upcoming term. — Jack Birle, The Washington Examiner, 14 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1853, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for semiautomatic

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