as in shooting
to strike with a missile from a gun
traded stories of the Wild West, when outlaws gunned men down in broad daylight and in cold blood
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Recent Examples of gunning
The Republicans’ refusal to negotiate — combined with the decision of House GOP leaders to cancel votes on the last two days before the shutdown deadline — has fueled the Democratic charges that GOP leaders are gunning for a shutdown.
—
Al Weaver, The Hill, 27 Sep. 2025
Tailored from a wool mélange fabric in a double-breasted stance, it’s softened by an unpadded shoulder and open patch pockets, lest anyone accuse you of gunning for the corner office.
—Eric Twardzik, Robb Report, 8 Sep. 2025
Because a fully healthy right fielder would have come up gunning on that play 10 times out of 10.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Sep. 2025
Google may have escaped the most serious consequences in its most recent antitrust fight with the US Department of Justice (DOJ), but the European Union is still gunning for the search giant.
—Ryan Whitwam, ArsTechnica, 5 Sep. 2025
Again, without spoiling too much, the arms dealer that Edwards and Hastings were gunning for in Iraq is now in Europe.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
The Yankees are obviously gunning for the division victory to ensure home field for at least the wild card round of the postseason.
—Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 31 Aug. 2025
American star Courtney Dauwalter has done it three times (2019, 2021, 2023) and is gunning for a fourth.
—Sierra Shafer, Outside, 29 Aug. 2025
Yet beneath the pyrotechnics, the filmmakers are gunning for emotional resonance that transcends the visual fireworks.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 25 Aug. 2025
Al Weaver, The Hill, 27 Sep. 2025
Tailored from a wool mélange fabric in a double-breasted stance, it’s softened by an unpadded shoulder and open patch pockets, lest anyone accuse you of gunning for the corner office.
—Eric Twardzik, Robb Report, 8 Sep. 2025
Because a fully healthy right fielder would have come up gunning on that play 10 times out of 10.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Sep. 2025
Google may have escaped the most serious consequences in its most recent antitrust fight with the US Department of Justice (DOJ), but the European Union is still gunning for the search giant.
—Ryan Whitwam, ArsTechnica, 5 Sep. 2025
Again, without spoiling too much, the arms dealer that Edwards and Hastings were gunning for in Iraq is now in Europe.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
The Yankees are obviously gunning for the division victory to ensure home field for at least the wild card round of the postseason.
—Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 31 Aug. 2025
American star Courtney Dauwalter has done it three times (2019, 2021, 2023) and is gunning for a fourth.
—Sierra Shafer, Outside, 29 Aug. 2025
Yet beneath the pyrotechnics, the filmmakers are gunning for emotional resonance that transcends the visual fireworks.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 25 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gunning
Verb
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Guadagnino encourages our doubts, shooting Maggie in exaggerated horror-movie closeups set to the doomy bass notes and shrieking winds of Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’s score.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
3 Oct. 2025
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Sanford crashed his pickup truck into the church, set the building on fire and began shooting, striking multiple victims.—
Kristen Jordan Shamus,
Freep.com,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
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While cracks and surface defects caused by traffic and environmental stress are easy to spot, detecting micro-cracks and damage in the lower layers still requires drilling and extracting core samples.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
1 Oct. 2025
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Energy Secretary Chris Wright has argued that the administration is making drilling cheaper by cutting red tape.—
Spencer Kimball,
CNBC,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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But the high-profile nature of the awards and the eye-popping figures associated with them are pushing board-level compensation committees that negotiate CEO pay to prepare for conversations about similar packages.—
Amanda Gerut,
Fortune,
5 Oct. 2025
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Ejae, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami — popping up in his fantasy.—
Dave Nemetz,
TVLine,
4 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gunning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gunning. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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