tommy gun 1 of 2

noun

Definition of tommy gunnext
as in machine gun

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tommy-gun

2 of 2

verb

as in to machine-gun

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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 tommy gun
Noun
Gunfire disrupts the silence as Raya emerges through smoke, armed with a tommy gun. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 8 Jan. 2026 Gauging from the trailer, this grisly period piece appears to be set in the South with Jordan starring in a dual role as a pair of twins, at least one of whom gets to spray bullets with a retro tommy gun. — Meredith Blake, Los Angeles Times, 1 Jan. 2025 The image of a mask-wearing authoritarian pointing a tommy gun at first looks like irresistible kitsch but now seems disturbingly accurate for the COVID apocalypse. — Armond White, National Review, 20 Aug. 2021
Verb
His tommy-gun dialogue, much of it laced with withering invective and punctuated with profanity, started a shift in the language of both theater and movies in this country. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 30 Apr. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tommy gun
  1. machine gun
  2. machine-gun
  3. submachine gun
  4. machine pistol
  5. assault rifle
  6. assault weapon
Noun
  • The teen, who has not been identified by police, has been charged with murder and possession of a machine gun conversion device, the Birmingham Police Department said on Monday.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 3 Nov. 2026
  • And that was all the time the boy standing behind the machine gun needed.
    — Ron Farina, Hartford Courant, 1 Nov. 2026
Definition of machine gun
Verb
  • Amid pratfalls and slapstick high jinks, Curry conducts his costars in a symphony of chaos, and rattles off zinger after zinger while also conveying the plot and ultimately the denouement in his machine-gun line readings.
    — Brian Truitt, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2026
  • The band blasted into a machine-gun pace, waking the entire crowd.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of machine-gun
Noun
  • On the roof, a three-year-old boy from Chile plays with a toy submachine gun, pointing it at anyone who comes within range.
    — Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2026
  • Police learned Pyles owns a handgun and a submachine gun, according to charging documents.
    — Jose R. Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 20 Aug. 2025
Definition of submachine gun
Noun
  • One casing is a 9mm caliber, likely a pistol, or a machine pistol or a submachine gun, Weir said.
    — Mohammad Al Sawalhi, CNN, 26 June 2024
  • Deputies also allegedly found a MAC-10 machine pistol and a 9 mm handgun under the passenger seat.
    — Jason Green, The Mercury News, 19 Aug. 2019
Definition of machine pistol
Noun
  • Bettison says the man picked up an assault rifle and pointed it toward officers, resulting in an exchange of gunfire between police and the man.
    — DeJanay Booth-Singleton, CBS News, 28 Oct. 2026
  • Then in 1989, an assailant attacked an elementary school in Stockton, California, using an assault rifle to kill five people and wound 29, prompting public outcry and calls to restrict such weapons.
    — Robert Spitzer, The Conversation, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of assault rifle
Noun
  • Durkin clashed with Pritzker over taxes and criminal justice issues but worked with him on a budget and capital construction plan during the governor’s first year and voted for his 2023 assault weapon ban.
    — Dan Petrella, Chicago Tribune, 30 Oct. 2026
  • However, even in semi-automatic firing mode, the assault weapon is destructive and usually retains other military features.
    — Robert Spitzer, The Conversation, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of assault weapon

Browse Nearby Words

tomfoolery
tommy gun
tommy-gun
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Cite this Entry

“Tommy gun.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tommy%20gun. Accessed 11 Nov. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on tommy gun

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about tommy gun

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