Thesaurus results for GUNS

guns 1 of 2

noun

plural of gun

as in weapons

large firearms (as cannons or rockets) the field commander called for the big guns to be deployed for the full-scale assault

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

guns

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of gun

as in shoots

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of guns

Noun

Gun buying age The Marjory Stoneman Douglas safety package also prohibited young Floridians from buying guns. — Romy Ellenbogen Herald, Miami Herald, 29 Sep. 2026 In two cases the thieves pointed guns at car owners who confronted them. — Todd Feurer, CBS News, 29 Sep. 2026 According to the Hope Foundation, which lobbies for greater gun control, more than 26,000 people have been killed in armed incidents, including by weapons other than guns, since 2014. — ABC News, 28 Sep. 2026 Three guns are kept in towns along Highway 550, and all of them are old; Ouray’s howitzer dates to 1954. — Peter Hessler, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026 His ministry, the Church of the Divine Fire, is a Christian nationalist group that worships God, guns, and right-wing propaganda, in that order. — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 28 Sep. 2026 Muzzle flashes appeared to show various guns shooting at the home, police said. — Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2026 Authorities said Monday that Spencer then stole a vehicle and guns Saturday and fired at a moving vehicle in El Dorado County. — Daniel Hunt, Sacbee.com, 21 Sep. 2026 Mayor Linda Gorton told me the city has handed out free gun locks and offered to buy back guns from residents, among other interventions. — Jenisha Watts, The Atlantic, 20 Sep. 2026

Verb

Both guns the suspect used in the shooting were acquired legally in San Antonio in 2017, Davis said. — Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN Money, 3 Mar. 2026 The military seemingly guns her down during a confrontation with Hopper and Eleven. — Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 1 Jan. 2026 One dog manages to escape the store, but Noem quickly catches up to it and brutally guns it down. — Jack Dunn, Variety, 12 Aug. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for guns

Noun

In August, the White House announced sanctions on five Cuban entities and eight individuals who help Cuba secure weapons and maintain relationships with foreign militaries.

— Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 30 Sep. 2026
Iran has long supplied the Houthis with weapons and other assistance, though Tehran denies directing their military operations.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of weapons

Verb

To emphasize the ghoulishness, cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki shoots the president and his advisors in unflattering low angles with a formaldehyde sheen.

— Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2026
An hysterical soldier shoots him, Rennie is carried to Walter Reed Hospital.

— THR Staff, HollywoodReporter, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of shoots

Noun

Phoenix has also invested at least $40 million in Reshef Technologies, a company producing electronic fuzes for artillery shells.

— Allegra Goodwin, CNN Money, 1 Oct. 2026
On a hot Saturday, Pawlikowski and I revisited those heights—the slopes from which, for almost four years, starting in the spring of 1992, Serbian artillery pounded Sarajevo, which lies vulnerably cupped in the valley below.

— Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of artillery

Verb

Fusion hardware drills deeper At the heart of the system is a gyrotron, a specialized vacuum electronic device capable of producing high-power millimeter waves.

— Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 29 Sep. 2026
As his colleagues look on, Brunson, in his desk chair, drills the shot across the room.

— William Vaillancourt, Rolling Stone, 27 Sep. 2026

Definition of drills

Noun

This rural Texas police department has, for no reason at all, a battle tank, evidence that surge in money and weaponry in the wake of 9/11 has these cops too excited to finally see some action.

— Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2026
There’s the integration of artificial intelligence with military weaponry, which is a real thing that’s happening.

— Tyler Foggatt, New Yorker, 17 Sep. 2026

Definition of weaponry

Browse Nearby Words

gunrunners

guns

gunsel

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Guns.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/guns. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of guns

noun

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

perseverate

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Popular in Wordplay

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

Games & Quizzes