sharpshooter
noun
sharp·shoot·er
ˈshärp-ˌshü-tər 
plural sharpshooters
1
: a person who is highly skilled in shooting a weapon (such as a rifle) at a mark or target
a police sharpshooter
Determined to prevent any attempt on Lincoln's life, General Winfield Scott had placed sharpshooters on the roofs of buildings along the avenue …—
David Herbert Donald
David Herbert Donald2
sports
: a consistently accurate shooter (as in basketball)
A 6' 9" sharpshooter who several NBA scouts predict will be a first-round pick …—Tim Crothers
Tim Crothers3
: any of various large leafhoppers that have powerful hind legs with spines on the tibia
The sharpshooter uses a needlelike mouthpart to suck fluids from trees and plants. As it goes from one to the next, it spreads diseases that can wipe out orange groves and other crops.—Carl Zimmer
Carl ZimmerIn Temecula, disease-carrying sharpshooters have turned some vineyards into wastelands.—Steve Schmidt
Steve SchmidtExamples of sharpshooter in a Sentence
the police stationed sharpshooters on rooftops all along the route of the presidential motorcade
Recent Examples on the Web
Hunter Tyson is a sharpshooter who needs to sharpen his shot.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 9 July 2025
Peter Andrew Stinson, a former Coast Guard lieutenant, expert sharpshooter, and former Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) instructor has been arrested and charged with threatening to kill President Donald Trump.
—Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 June 2025
She was arrested and taken into custody in October 2023 after after barricading herself in a Southwest Miami-Dade home and getting into a shootout with police sharpshooters.
—Charles Rabin, Miami Herald, 13 May 2025
The 6-10 forward, a sharpshooter in his own right, averaged 18.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.1 assists across 77 games last season, shooting 50.4% from the field and 39.5% from deep.
—C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 30 June 2025
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Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 9 July 2025
Peter Andrew Stinson, a former Coast Guard lieutenant, expert sharpshooter, and former Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) instructor has been arrested and charged with threatening to kill President Donald Trump.
—Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 June 2025
She was arrested and taken into custody in October 2023 after after barricading herself in a Southwest Miami-Dade home and getting into a shootout with police sharpshooters.
—Charles Rabin, Miami Herald, 13 May 2025
The 6-10 forward, a sharpshooter in his own right, averaged 18.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.1 assists across 77 games last season, shooting 50.4% from the field and 39.5% from deep.
—C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 30 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for sharpshooter
Cite this Entry
“Sharpshooter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sharpshooter. Accessed 2 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sharpshooter
noun
sharp·shoot·er
ˈshärp-ˌshüt-ər
: one skilled in shooting : a good marksman
sharpshooting
noun
-ˌshüt-iŋ
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