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Glite Dictionary
shoot-'em-up

shoot-'em-up

1 8.0
A fast action film or game with lots of shooting and fights
  • noun
  • /ˈʃuːt əm ʌp/
  • NSFW
translation icon : juego de disparos
  • Fans of action movies love a good shoot-'em-up filled with explosions and thrilling chase scenes.

Examples

  • The latest video game is an exciting shoot-'em-up that keeps players on the edge of their seats with intense gunfights.

  • The main thing I don't like about it is that it sets up future Trek to distill down to being merely a shoot-em-up.

    Blog text (12)

  • In this classic shoot-'em-up, players navigate through levels while battling enemies in dramatic firefights.

How Violent

graphic gore
  • Offensive
8.4
shoot-'em-up
  • NSFW
1 8.0
violent
  • Offensive
∞ 2.5
actioner
  • Jargon
1 7.4
family film
3 1.7

Surface Forms

shoot-'em-up singular
shoot-'em-ups plural
shoot 'em ups plural
shoot 'em up singular

Morphology

shoot-'em-up = shoot + up (transparent) = shoot + 'em + up

The noun is directly derived from the colloquial verb phrase 'shoot 'em up' (shoot + 'em + up); the meaning 'work characterized by frequent shooting' is readily inferable from the components.

Etymology

Shoot-'em-up comes from the spoken phrase shoot 'em up, where shoot means 'fire a gun' and 'em is short for 'them', so the name says exactly what these films or games are about: lots of shooting and violent action.