smoking gun
noun
: something that serves as conclusive evidence or proof (as of a crime or scientific theory)
Examples of smoking gun in a Sentence
This document is the smoking gun that proves that he was lying.
Recent Examples on the Web
There was no single smoking gun; this story defies simple explanations.
—
Samuel Charap, Foreign Affairs, 16 Apr. 2024
The academics with whom the science of crypto tracing originated acknowledge that it should not be applied as evidence in isolation, or mischaracterized as some sort of a smoking gun.
—Joel Khalili, WIRED, 27 Mar. 2024
The smoking gun Initially, the research team’s efforts led to a study presented in March 2023 that suggested the Noctis Labyrinthus region may be home to a massive glacier covered in salt deposits.
—Jackie Wattles, CNN, 29 Mar. 2024
Are the bricks in the photo the smoking guns they’ve been made out to be?
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 13 Mar. 2024
It’s pored over in court: a smoking gun, analyzed in different persuasive ways by prosecution and defense.
—Nicolas Rapold, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2023
But there was no mushroom cloud and there was no smoking gun, because the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein didn’t have any weapons of mass destruction.
—Bernie Sanders, Foreign Affairs, 18 Mar. 2024
Despite what the prosecutor characterizes as overwhelming circumstantial evidence against Monica, there is no smoking gun connecting her to the conspiracy.
—Greg Fisher, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2024
In this case, there remains no smoking gun to prove either side of the authorship question.
—Stephen Cox, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Mar. 2024
Samuel Charap, Foreign Affairs, 16 Apr. 2024
The academics with whom the science of crypto tracing originated acknowledge that it should not be applied as evidence in isolation, or mischaracterized as some sort of a smoking gun.
—Joel Khalili, WIRED, 27 Mar. 2024
The smoking gun Initially, the research team’s efforts led to a study presented in March 2023 that suggested the Noctis Labyrinthus region may be home to a massive glacier covered in salt deposits.
—Jackie Wattles, CNN, 29 Mar. 2024
Are the bricks in the photo the smoking guns they’ve been made out to be?
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 13 Mar. 2024
It’s pored over in court: a smoking gun, analyzed in different persuasive ways by prosecution and defense.
—Nicolas Rapold, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2023
But there was no mushroom cloud and there was no smoking gun, because the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein didn’t have any weapons of mass destruction.
—Bernie Sanders, Foreign Affairs, 18 Mar. 2024
Despite what the prosecutor characterizes as overwhelming circumstantial evidence against Monica, there is no smoking gun connecting her to the conspiracy.
—Greg Fisher, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2024
In this case, there remains no smoking gun to prove either side of the authorship question.
—Stephen Cox, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'smoking gun.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near smoking gun
Cite this Entry
“Smoking gun.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/smoking%20gun. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
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