as in assault weapon
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Recent Examples of assault rifle
Video from the attack showed one assailant carrying what appeared to be an assault rifle, wearing a brown backpack, and hiding behind a bus when exchanging fire with police.
—
Suzan Fraser, Chicago Tribune, 7 Apr. 2026
Video from the attack showed one assailant carrying what appeared to be an assault rifle, wearing a brown backpack and hiding behind a bus when exchanging fire with police.
—ABC News, 7 Apr. 2026
Hours later, Thomas reportedly returned with an AK-47 assault rifle and fired 31 rounds into the man’s home.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 3 Apr. 2026
After six days of marching under the barrel of an assault rifle, Caldwell triggered his group’s escape by pushing one of their captors off a cliff.
—Namir Khaliq, Big Think, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for assault rifle
Suzan Fraser, Chicago Tribune, 7 Apr. 2026
Video from the attack showed one assailant carrying what appeared to be an assault rifle, wearing a brown backpack and hiding behind a bus when exchanging fire with police.
—ABC News, 7 Apr. 2026
Hours later, Thomas reportedly returned with an AK-47 assault rifle and fired 31 rounds into the man’s home.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 3 Apr. 2026
After six days of marching under the barrel of an assault rifle, Caldwell triggered his group’s escape by pushing one of their captors off a cliff.
—Namir Khaliq, Big Think, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for assault rifle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for assault rifle
Noun
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Analysis shows that nearly 20% of mass killings are committed with weapons other than firearms Semiautomatic handguns are far more common in mass killings than guns that are typically characterized as assault weapons, such as the AR-15.—
USA Today,
USA Today,
20 Apr. 2026
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Davis faces state felony charges of possessing an assault weapon, being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition and having a firearm after a prior juvenile conviction.—
Rosalio Ahumada,
Sacbee.com,
16 Apr. 2026
Noun
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While taking fire in thigh-deep snow, Chapman cleared an enemy bunker before charging a second one with a machine gun.—
Caleb Lunetta,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
22 Apr. 2026
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Tybee Island’s controversial Orange Crush weekend ended with 26 arrests and five firearms seized, including one weapon police say had been converted into a makeshift machine gun capable of fully automatic fire.—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
20 Apr. 2026
Noun
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On the roof, a three-year-old boy from Chile plays with a toy submachine gun, pointing it at anyone who comes within range.—
Miami Herald Archives,
Miami Herald,
27 Feb. 2026
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Police learned Pyles owns a handgun and a submachine gun, according to charging documents.—
Jose R. Gonzalez,
AZCentral.com,
20 Aug. 2025
Noun
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One casing is a 9mm caliber, likely a pistol, or a machine pistol or a submachine gun, Weir said.—
Mohammad Al Sawalhi,
CNN,
26 June 2024
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Prosecutors said police found two weapons in the getaway car when the men were detained on a highway about 50 kilometers (30 miles) outside Amsterdam, a Heckler and Koch machine pistol and, in a Louis Vuitton bag, a blank-firing pistol that had been modified to take 9-millimeter rounds.—
MIKE CORDER,
ajc,
18 Oct. 2021
Noun
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Gunfire disrupts the silence as Raya emerges through smoke, armed with a tommy gun.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
8 Jan. 2026
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After speeches by longtime colleagues (the F.B.I. director, Christopher Wray, presented him with a replica tommy gun), Garland spoke.—
Fabio Bertoni,
The New Yorker,
17 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Elkins was using a rifle during the incident, Shreveport Police Cpl.—
Zoe Sottile,
CNN Money,
20 Apr. 2026
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One neighbor who attended the meeting told the board that a man who lived at the lot had been walking up and down the wash with what appeared to be an AR-15 and a crack pipe in his mouth, pointing the rifle at the homes.—
Ruben Vives,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Assault rifle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/assault%20rifle. Accessed 26 Apr. 2026.
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