Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
🔫 A shooting sport 🛡️ For the sport
airsoft

airsoft

1 4.2
A sport where people shoot small plastic pellets at each other using replica guns
  • noun
  • /ˈɛrˌsɔft/
translation icon : airsoft
  • Other than that, I, I have played a little bit of airsoft, never got super into that, but I did a little bit of that all skiing.
  • airsoft gun

He's in there all kitted up and looks like he's like this little kid playing airsoft.

Examples

  • To prepare for the airsoft match, we checked our gear and ensured that our replica guns were fully loaded.

  • Many enthusiasts enjoy customizing their airsoft replicas to improve their performance in competitions.

  • Oh, we had this airsoft gun that was like way too powerful.

  • And having a little Airsoft war party.

    Schoolgirls in Chains (1973)

  • You know... with our Airsoft guns.

    Blog text (23)

  • Alek and I are gonna play Airsoft outside.

    The 15:17 to Paris (2018)

  • Has anyone here ever seen a high-end airsoft gun?

    Blog text (20)

  • I would rather just stick to airsoft, and plus it will save me tons of money not having to buy a 3-D printer that costs a million dollars.

    Blog text (15)

  • There's something to be said for airsoft guns that look real but can't possibly be mistakenly used lethally.

    Blog text (20)

  • During the weekend, my friends and I organized an exciting game of airsoft in the park.

Synonyms

paintball
vsairsoft
24 3.7

A game in which players shoot small paint-filled balls to hit and mark other players

uses replica guns to fire plastic pellets that do not visibly mark opponents

How Realistic

airsoft
1 4.2
paintball
24 3.7
slag tag
  • Baby Talk
9.5

Surface Forms

airsoft singular
airsofts plural

Morphology

airsoft = air + soft (semi-transparent) = air + soft

The compound 'air' + 'soft' is understandable in parts, but the specialized sense 'a sport using replica guns and soft pellets' requires cultural knowledge not deducible by all learners.

Etymology

Airsoft comes from the two simple parts air and soft, because the guns use air to fire small plastic pellets that are 'soft' compared with real bullets. So an airsoft game is a sport with realistic but not dangerous guns.