1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

potshot 1 of 2

verb

Definition of potshotnext
as in to attack
to criticize harshly and usually publicly The comic ended the show with a rant in which he potshot an assortment of celebrities.

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

potshot

2 of 2

noun

as in salvo

Related 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 potshot
Noun
No one takes potshots at Washington or Thomas Jefferson or Benjamin Franklin, the usual lineup of Founding Fathers. — Bill Goodykoontz, AZCentral.com, 12 Nov. 2025 No, Sean Payton wasn’t throwing a stray potshot at his special teams coordinator. — Luca Evans, Denver Post, 3 Nov. 2025 As evidenced by this weekend’s flurry of festivities around its 50th anniversary, SNL has survived all the potshots. — Josef Adalian, Vulture, 14 Feb. 2025 Taking a potshot is a 90-day misdemeanor, plus fines. — Neal Rubin, Freep.com, 6 June 2024 See All Example Sentences for potshot
Recent Examples of Synonyms for potshot
  1. attack
  2. salvo
  3. slam
  4. barrage
  5. scold
  6. volley
  7. insult
  8. fusillade
Verb
  • Qatar and Oman have also been attacked by Iranian drones and missiles.
    — Lauren Morganbesser, semafor.com, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Fire grows after manhunt keeps crews out The Mineral Fire grew to 18 acres by Monday morning after the armed manhunt prevented firefighters from attacking it for hours.
    — Daniel Hunt, Sacbee.com, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of attack
Noun
  • If the story of women’s liberation is often told as one long unlacing of the corset, an early salvo came from the French barricades.
    — Jennifer Wilson, New Yorker, 7 Sep. 2026
  • The legal filings marked the latest salvo in Missouri’s protracted redistricting fight.
    — Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of salvo
Verb
  • Worse still, the impact slammed the Ferrari into a car in front, damaging both the convertible’s front and rear ends.
    — Howard Walker, Robb Report, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The crash happened days after an SUV driver allegedly under the influence of drugs careened down the wrong lane in Chatsworth and slammed into a Metro bus, killing two riders and injuring six others.
    — Suhauna Hussain, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of slam
Noun
  • Syracuse outgained Cal by almost 200 yards last week and still lost 21-18 after Steve Angeli threw three interceptions and the Orange were called for a barrage of penalties.
    — Jenny Catlin, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026
  • But with their popularity, there have been some incidents where some stars have been made to feel uncomfortable by the barrage of requests that come at them.
    — Ryan Gaydos OutKick, FOXNews.com, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of barrage
Verb
  • Historically, the United States has sent mixed messages to Europeans, encouraging them to step up but then scolding them for seeking autonomy.
    — JENNIFER KAVANAGH, Foreign Affairs, 28 Aug. 2026
  • In fact, during testing, the handheld triggered nostalgic memories of playing Final Fantasy Legend and Mario Land 2 on long car rides to my grandparents' house, but without the eye strain and being scolded for playing in the dark as the sun set.
    — Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 22 Aug. 2026
Definition of scold
Noun
  • Castro scored with a volley from inside the box in the 87th minute—enough for the Argentine team to advance with a 2-1 aggregate score.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Jorrel Hato misjudged the flight of the delivery, allowing Belloumi to emphatically half-volley a shot into the bottom corner.
    — Conor O'Neill, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of volley
Verb
  • Trump has also lashed out at individual reporters in person or over social media, sometimes in strikingly personal terms -- insulting them in briefings, or in his recent speech at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 20 Sep. 2026
  • The film internalizes potential objections about a foreign director making a film that claims insight into Japanese characters’ interiority, with Carter being ritualistically insulted as a gaijin, or outsider.
    — Vadim Rizov, Variety, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of insult
Noun
  • East and West are once again locked in a life-and-death confrontation, even as Putin fires off a fusillade of threats to launch nuclear missiles against any Western power that comes to Ukraine’s aid.
    — Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Iran’s military said the fusillade was a warning.
    — Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 8 June 2026
Definition of fusillade

Browse Nearby Words

pots
potshot
potshots
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Potshot.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/potshot. Accessed 22 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of nemesis

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

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

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
crayons-in-a-circle
Guess the Color Quiz Questions that use the whole box of crayons.
See All