fusillade
3
9.5
- noun
- /ˌfjuːzɪˈleɪd/
- Literature
:
fusilada
- The soldiers took cover as a rapid fusillade erupted from the enemy camp.
- fusillade of bullets
- fusillade of gunfire
- fusillade of shots
Examples
-
Just as the service was ending, they heard a deafening fusillade of gunshots outside the church, followed immediately by the sound of shattering glass.
Fiction book (1993) -
Dubov staggers under the fusillade of bullets.
Fiction book (1997) -
A final explosive fusillade leaves only Alex standing.
Fiction book (2000) -
Eve crawls through the fusillade toward the exit.
Fiction book (1997) -
Receive a fusillade of flashing and honking.
Fiction book (1998) -
A fusillade of firecrackers went off, their tails flailing in the air.
Fiction book (2002) -
There was no point in dwelling on the fusillade Cooley had let off during the pursuit, or the shots fired after the car had stopped.
Fiction book (2002) -
The laughter and droll remarks pass from one to another, a continual fusillade all around.
Academic text (2002) -
The next volley was fuller; in a moment, a fusillade of shots made separate volleys impossible to distinguish.
Fiction book (1992) -
Viktor, Julot, and the rest of the patrol opened fire, bombarding the Riff horsemen with a fusillade of bullets.
Fiction book (1998)
Synonyms
22
5.6
A quick group of shots fired together
20
4.4
A short, intense effort to do something quickly, often by many people
11
6.8
A sudden series of shots fired quickly, for example from guns
8
8.6
A sudden group of gun or cannon shots fired together
1
9.8
A period when heavy guns like cannons fire without stopping at a place
Many weapons fire together at one target
Fire from several weapons aimed together at one target
How Intense
47
7.0
- Specialized
14
7.6
- Literature
3
9.5
- Specialized
11
6.8
∞
2.3
Surface Forms
Etymology
Fusillade comes from the French word fusil, which meant 'gun' or a small firearm; the French added -ade to show a group or action. A helpful way to remember it is to imagine a sudden burst of many guns firing at once, which is why a fusillade means a rapid series of shots or attacks.