artillery

American  

[ahr-til-uh-ree] / ɑrˈtɪl ə ri /

noun

1. mounted projectile-firing guns or missile launchers, mobile or stationary, light or heavy, as distinguished from small arms.

2. the troops or the branch of an army concerned with the use and service of such weapons.

3. the science that treats of the use of such weapons.

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artillery British  

/ ɑːˈtɪlərɪ /

noun

1. guns, cannon, howitzers, mortars, etc, of calibre greater than 20 mm

2. troops or military units specializing in using such guns

3. the science dealing with the use of guns

4. devices for discharging heavy missiles, such as catapults or slings

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Etymology

Origin of artillery

1350–1400; Middle English artil ( le ) rie, artelry, art ( u ) ry armaments, ballistic engines < Anglo-French, Middle French artillerie, equivalent to Old French artill ( ier ) to equip, arm, alteration, by association with art art ¹, of atill ( i ) er to set in order, put on armor (< Vulgar Latin *apticulāre, derivative of Latin aptāre to put on (armor, ornaments, etc.; adapt ); -i- for expected -ei- perhaps by association with atirier; attire ) + -erie -ery

Example Sentences

Israel's famed Iron Dome system is the third tier and was originally designed to intercept short-range rockets and artillery shells.

From Barron's

South Korean and Western intelligence agencies have estimated that the North has sent thousands of soldiers to Russia, primarily to the Kursk region, along with artillery shells, missiles and rocket systems.

From Barron's

Moscow has used the Caspian to bring in large quantities of Iranian artillery shells and other ammunition to resupply troops on the front lines, the Journal has reported.

From The Wall Street Journal

During the first weeks of Russia’s Starlink outage, Ukraine was able to push the Russians back from the outskirts of Zaporizhzhia, the regional capital, sparing the city from assaults from most artillery.

From The Wall Street Journal

Every type of artillery had a nickname—toad, monkey, bee—as did every piece of equipment and every type of transportation, and sometimes the French slang terms were different entirely from the English ones.

From Literature

Related Words

• battery
• cannon
• ordnance