as in firearm
a portable weapon from which a shot is discharged by gunpowder
the soldiers keep their small arms securely in their holsters when not on patrol
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of small arm
From the north and from the island’s southern highpoint, 550-foot Mount Suribachi, shells and small arms fire rained on the Marines, the Courant reported.
—
Helen I. Bennett, Hartford Courant, 6 Feb. 2026
Sort of small arms warfare, where they were harassed for months in one of these sad situations where the cops wouldn’t intervene.
—Peter Larsen, Oc Register, 8 Jan. 2026
The Russia-Ukraine War began as a fairly standard 21st-century conventional war, marked by huge armored columns trying to take key cities and military installations, air assaults, close air support, and small arms gunbattles.
—Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 28 Dec. 2025
Still, no small arm matches its raw stopping power within its effective range.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for small arm
Helen I. Bennett, Hartford Courant, 6 Feb. 2026
Sort of small arms warfare, where they were harassed for months in one of these sad situations where the cops wouldn’t intervene.
—Peter Larsen, Oc Register, 8 Jan. 2026
The Russia-Ukraine War began as a fairly standard 21st-century conventional war, marked by huge armored columns trying to take key cities and military installations, air assaults, close air support, and small arms gunbattles.
—Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 28 Dec. 2025
Still, no small arm matches its raw stopping power within its effective range.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for small arm
Recent Examples of Synonyms for small arm
Noun
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During the fight, a firearm was discharged.—
Jeramie Bizzle,
CBS News,
19 Apr. 2026
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Bordelon said Elkins had been arrested in 2019 in a firearms case.—
Gerald Herbert,
Chicago Tribune,
19 Apr. 2026
Noun
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An emotional reunion for a suburban family who lost a loved one to gun violence.—
Jermont Terry,
CBS News,
16 Apr. 2026
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Before his death, Mikhail had told sheriff’s deputies that he had been jumped in September by eight gun-wielding individuals, including Elijah, at the YMCA basketball courts near Oak Ridge High School.—
Silas Morgan,
The Orlando Sentinel,
16 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Small arm.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/small%20arm. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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