smoking gun
noun
: something that serves as conclusive evidence or proof (as of a crime or scientific theory)
Examples of smoking gun in a Sentence
This document is the smoking gun that proves that he was lying.
Recent Examples on the Web
The defense attorney’s suspicions led him to request the plaintiff’s call detail records, which revealed a smoking gun: three calls between the plaintiff and the clinic's office manager in the week before the accident.
—
Lars Daniel, Forbes, 7 Mar. 2025
Some Western intelligence and national security officials caution there is no smoking gun that signals Moscow's direct responsibility in all of the recent cable cutting incidents.
—Erin Banco and Mari Saito, USA TODAY, 19 Mar. 2025
There is not a smoking gun; there is not just one causal factor.
—Gary Stix, Scientific American, 30 Jan. 2025
Barring any smoking guns, that gives the board some legal leeway, according to Zohar Goshen, a professor at Columbia Law School.
—Andrew Ross Sorkin, New York Times, 26 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for smoking gun
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Lars Daniel, Forbes, 7 Mar. 2025
Some Western intelligence and national security officials caution there is no smoking gun that signals Moscow's direct responsibility in all of the recent cable cutting incidents.
—Erin Banco and Mari Saito, USA TODAY, 19 Mar. 2025
There is not a smoking gun; there is not just one causal factor.
—Gary Stix, Scientific American, 30 Jan. 2025
Barring any smoking guns, that gives the board some legal leeway, according to Zohar Goshen, a professor at Columbia Law School.
—Andrew Ross Sorkin, New York Times, 26 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for smoking gun
Cite this Entry
“Smoking gun.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/smoking%20gun. Accessed 15 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share