active shooter
noun
plural active shooters
: a person who is illegally using a firearm to kill or try to kill people especially in a public place : a person who is shooting at people
Stunned shoppers and mall employees initially mistook the sound of glass breaking for gunshots, leading to false rumors of an active shooter.—
Caitlin Antonios
Caitlin Antoniosactive shooter drills
Examples of active shooter in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Finally catch your breath after last week’s unflinching look at the carnage that fills the ER of Pittsburgh Medical Trauma Center after an active shooter situation at Pitt Fest?
—Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 27 Mar. 2025
But it was treated as an active shooter situation, which led to a lockdown and other security steps at the hospital as well as at schools in Troy.
—Compiled By Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 21 Mar. 2025
But supporters of the bans have noted that students’ phones could pose additional dangers during an emergency by distracting students or by revealing their location during an active shooter situation.
—Andrew Demillo, The Denver Post, 25 Jan. 2025
Deputies responded to what was reportedly an active shooter situation at Lansing Mall, in the Lansing suburb of Waverly, on the night of Saturday, March 15, the Eaton County Sheriff’s Office said in a March 16 news release.
—Mitchell Willetts, Kansas City Star, 16 Mar. 2025
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Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 27 Mar. 2025
But it was treated as an active shooter situation, which led to a lockdown and other security steps at the hospital as well as at schools in Troy.
—Compiled By Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 21 Mar. 2025
But supporters of the bans have noted that students’ phones could pose additional dangers during an emergency by distracting students or by revealing their location during an active shooter situation.
—Andrew Demillo, The Denver Post, 25 Jan. 2025
Deputies responded to what was reportedly an active shooter situation at Lansing Mall, in the Lansing suburb of Waverly, on the night of Saturday, March 15, the Eaton County Sheriff’s Office said in a March 16 news release.
—Mitchell Willetts, Kansas City Star, 16 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for active shooter
Cite this Entry
“Active shooter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/active%20shooter. Accessed 14 Apr. 2025.
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