machine-gun

1 of 3

adjective

ma·​chine-gun mə-ˈshēn-ˌgən How to pronounce machine-gun (audio)
: characterized by rapidity and sharpness : rapid-fire
a comic's machine-gun delivery

machine-gun

2 of 3

verb

machine-gunned; machine-gunning; machine-guns

transitive verb

: to shoot at, wound, or kill (someone or something) with a machine gun
machine-gunned a marauding gang of terrorists outside the U.S. embassy …Terry Eagleton
A few years later someone machine-gunned to death the prosecutor who wanted to try the group for killing the soldiers.Paul Berman
machine gunner noun
or less commonly machine-gunner
plural machine gunners also machine-gunners
These battalions were composed of the hardened infantrymen—riflemen, machine gunners, grenadiers, and mortarmen—who carried the main burden of the war. Shelby L. Stanton

machine gun

3 of 3

noun

plural machine guns
: a gun for sustained rapid fire that uses bullets
broadly : an automatic weapon

Examples of machine-gun in a Sentence

Noun They heard the sound of machine-gun fire.
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
People were trapped in the open, incinerated, asphyxiated and strafed with machine-gun fire. Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024 The film’s fashion reputation preceded it; fans with temporary machine-gun tattoos mobbed the red carpet. Kimberly Chrisman-Campbell, The Atlantic, 10 Mar. 2024 Getting hooked on Hearn’s machine-gun delivery led to the Lakers becoming his favorite team. Scott Howard-Cooper., Los Angeles Times, 3 Mar. 2024 The melody and Coriolanus’ calls to Lucy Gray come alive in the woods, prompting him to machine-gun the trees to stop the noise. EW.com, 17 Nov. 2023 All morning, fighting could be heard throughout the area, most of it machine-gun fire and shelling, as Israeli troops advancing deeper into Gaza clashed with Hamas fighters. Patrick Kingsley Avishag Shaar-Yashuv, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2024 Its spine stretched from Winchester in New Haven, Connecticut, to Colt in Hartford to Smith & Wesson in Springfield, Massachusetts, and north to machine-gun maker Saco Lowell in Maine. James Bandler, ProPublica, 21 Nov. 2023 Hundreds of thousands have fled to the south, leaving a silence broken only by the pop of machine-gun fire and the heavy thrum of Israeli tanks. Steve Hendrix, Washington Post, 19 Nov. 2023 But the men on the hill were ready and laid down suppressive machine-gun fire of their own. Oleksandr Chubko, New York Times, 22 Oct. 2023
Verb
As someone who grew up in the Dodgers’ family and now can’t stand the sight of them, who wants to beat them as Buddy Rich might machine-gun his snare drum. San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Feb. 2023
Noun
The search also resulted in the seizure of multiple firearms, including a machine gun and body armor. Salvador Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024 Instead, sometime after midnight, military vehicles arrived, and a cluster of soldiers muscled their way in, fanned out, and pointed machine guns at the students. Alma Guillermoprieto, The New Yorker, 4 Mar. 2024 Congress responded by enacting the National Firearms Act in 1934 banning machine guns. Nina Totenberg, NPR, 28 Feb. 2024 Kid Rock strafed at Bud Light cases with his machine gun (and actually managed to hit a few cans). Barbara Lippert, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Feb. 2024 In December 2018, his administration banned bump stocks, the attachments that allow semi-automatic weapons to fire like machine guns and were used during the October 2017 shooting massacre in Las Vegas. Jill Colvin, Twin Cities, 9 Feb. 2024 Under federal law, the devices on their own are considered machine guns. The Enquirer, 9 Jan. 2024 The industry of killing was having tanks, airplanes, submarines, machine guns. Lily Moayeri, SPIN, 9 Feb. 2024 At each corner a Japanese soldier stood guard with a machine gun. Richard Sandomir, New York Times, 3 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'machine-gun.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1906, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1894, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1867, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of machine-gun was in 1867

Dictionary Entries Near machine-gun

machine-glazed

machine-gun

machine gun

Cite this Entry

“Machine-gun.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/machine-gun. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

machine gun

noun
: an automatic gun capable of continuous firing
machine-gun verb
machine gunner noun

More from Merriam-Webster on machine-gun

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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