rifle 1 of 2

noun

Definition of riflenext
as in shotgun

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rifle

2 of 2

verb

ˈrī-fəl How to pronounce rifle (audio)
as in to search
to look through (as a place) carefully or thoroughly in an effort to find or discover something rifled the desk drawer in search of the insurance policy

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 rifle
Noun
Idaho has the longest centerfire rifle seasons in roadless areas. — Natalie Krebs, Outdoor Life, 26 Aug. 2026 So this wasn't some celebrity photo-op where Shaq showed up, held a rifle and went home. — Amber Harding Outkick, FOXNews.com, 24 Aug. 2026
Verb
Vinícius exchanged passes with Bruno Guimarães on the left flank, took a few touches to cut around Neil El Aynaoui and rifled a right-footed shot past the outstretched arm of Yassine Bounou for his 10th international goal. — ABC News, 13 June 2026 The woman’s daughter showed investigators video footage showing Robinson rifling through the woman’s drawers, selecting items and hiding them on her body. — Kairi Lowery, Miami Herald, 5 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for rifle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rifle
  1. shotgun
  2. search
  3. musket
  4. comb
  5. flintlock
  6. rake
  7. smoothbore
  8. blunderbuss
Noun
  • Wolff was also seen on a storage unit’s surveillance camera getting out of a truck with a shotgun while wearing a camo jacket.
    — David Zeug, Outdoor Life, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Greenidge turned around to see a police shotgun pointed at his head.
    — Jeff Weiss, HollywoodReporter, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of shotgun
Verb
  • Florida Highway Patrol troopers are continuing to search for the hit-and-run driver, according to Florida Today.
    — Desiree Anello, PEOPLE, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Every time an employee asks AI to summarize a meeting, rewrite an email, analyze a spreadsheet or search through thousands of internal documents, the company is paying for another unit of intelligence.
    — Tiffany Chang, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of search
Noun
  • The alleged texts between the boys, who attended Switzerland Point Middle School, contained information about building a shotgun and musket, as well as obtaining zip ties, per the arrest report.
    — James Cirrone, FOXNews.com, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Most of the statue was melted down and reformed into musket balls, and several of these are on display in the opening section of the show across from four large intact pieces of the original.
    — Cat Dawson, ARTnews.com, 3 July 2026
Definition of musket
Verb
  • Attorneys for the city, petitioners and objectors have combed through Kane County voter registration records, according to Raymond Esquivel, Kane County director of elections.
    — Addison Wright, Chicago Tribune, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Trump likely does not comb through his budget requests line-by-line, especially for a civil space agency.
    — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of comb
Noun
  • Smoke billowed from his flintlock and Rhoades didn’t see where the buck ran after the shot.
    — Bob McNally, Outdoor Life, 28 Jan. 2026
  • Modern gun technologies are far, far more deadly than the one-shot flintlocks of the 18th century—shouldn’t that matter?
    — Robert J. Spitzer, Time, 6 June 2023
Definition of flintlock
Verb
  • The rains came from a typical monsoon storm; these storms rake across the Grand Canyon and the desert Southwest between June and September every year.
    — Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Compost Fallen Leaves Instead of mowing, consider raking the fallen leaves into a compost pile.
    — SJ McShane, Martha Stewart, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of rake
Noun
  • Both tanks mount 120-125 mm smoothbore cannons capable of engaging armored vehicles at long range.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 30 June 2026
  • At least three states — Hawaii, Ohio and North Dakota — treat a smoothbore musket the same as an AK-47 or AR-15.
    — Allen G. Breed, Los Angeles Times, 14 May 2026
Definition of smoothbore
Noun
  • Trump would also stop treating the Europeans as enemies with his blunderbuss tariffs.
    — Trudy Rubin, Mercury News, 15 Aug. 2025
  • Cost cutting ‘blunderbuss’ DOGE is part of a long line of presidential efforts to take an ax to the administrative state.
    — Zac Anderson, USA TODAY, 11 Feb. 2025
Definition of blunderbuss

Browse Nearby Words

riffs
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Cite this Entry

“Rifle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rifle. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on rifle

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about rifle

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