sharpshooter

noun

sharp·​shoot·​er ˈshärp-ˌshü-tər 

plural sharpshooters

1

: a person who is highly skilled in shooting a weapon (such as a rifle) at a mark or target

a police sharpshooter

Determined to prevent any attempt on Lincoln's life, General Winfield Scott had placed sharpshooters on the roofs of buildings along the avenue …

—David Herbert Donald

2

sports : a consistently accurate shooter (as in basketball)

A 6' 9" sharpshooter who several NBA scouts predict will be a first-round pick …

—Tim Crothers

3

: any of various large leafhoppers that have powerful hind legs with spines on the tibia

The sharpshooter uses a needlelike mouthpart to suck fluids from trees and plants. As it goes from one to the next, it spreads diseases that can wipe out orange groves and other crops.

—Carl Zimmer

In Temecula, disease-carrying sharpshooters have turned some vineyards into wastelands.

—Steve Schmidt

Synonyms

• marksman
• shooter
• shot

Examples of sharpshooter in a Sentence

the police stationed sharpshooters on rooftops all along the route of the presidential motorcade

Recent Examples on the Web

Christian Braun and Peyton Watson have picked up some of the slack, but recent history tells us what happens in the postseason when a sharpshooter becomes an Otterpop. —Troy Renck, Denver Post, 26 Mar. 2025

Bogdanovic, a Serbian sharpshooter who was acquired from Atlanta at the trade deadline in early February, scored a season-high 30 points to go with 11 rebounds and Ivica Zubac added 26 points and 14 rebounds, helping the Clippers beat the Miami Heat, 119-104, on Wednesday night. —Staff and News Service Reports, Orange County Register, 13 Mar. 2025

In Lioness, Sheridan plays Cody Spears, a black ops sharpshooter who bails out Joe McNamara with a kill count in the hundreds. —Stephen Rodrick, Rolling Stone, 9 Mar. 2025

And the Rams started Friday in a 17-3 hole before Lunsford and fellow sharpshooter Sam Mielenz both caught fire. —Kyle Newman, The Denver Post, 7 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1794, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

sharpshooter

noun

sharp·​shoot·​er ˈshärp-ˌshüt-ər 

: one skilled in shooting : a good marksman

sharpshooting

-ˌshüt-iŋ

noun