How to Use semiautomatic in a Sentence

semiautomatic

adjective
  • Tucked inside the green bag next to the singer was a .45-caliber semiautomatic handgun, which added to the charges against him.
    Dallas News, 19 Jan. 2023
  • Many of the men carry M-1s, the semiautomatic carbines that were a staple in the war.
    Tunku Varadarajan, WSJ, 28 May 2021
  • Four masked men armed with semiautomatic weapons leaped out of a blue van that had been pre-positioned on the left side of the road.
    Tom Sancton, Town & Country, 31 Mar. 2022
  • The judge said there was enough evidence for Rocky to face the two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm.
    Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 21 Nov. 2023
  • The suspect then stepped out of the truck with a semiautomatic shotgun in hand and ran after Beesley.
    Katie Shepherd, Anchorage Daily News, 28 June 2021
  • The gunman was armed with a semiautomatic handgun, one of the weapons that he was legally allowed to own.
    Melissa Eddy, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2023
  • Thom then pulled out a 9mm Glock semiautomatic firearm as Ah Nee tried to open the front passenger’s door — but it was locked.
    Washington Post, 16 June 2021
  • And just like the Texas shooter, he was armed with an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle.
    Corky Siemaszko, NBC News, 27 May 2022
  • In February, he was shot in the head with a semiautomatic pistol and buried in a desolate stretch of desert.
    Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2021
  • At the national level, the House passed a bill last week to raise the minimum age to buy semiautomatic rifles to 21.
    Paul Best, Fox News, 15 June 2022
  • He is charged with one count of assault with a semiautomatic firearm in that incident.
    Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 22 Nov. 2023
  • The school staff did not search the 15-year-old’s backpack, where a semiautomatic handgun was stashed at one point, officials say.
    Washington Post, 9 Dec. 2021
  • In August 2022, Rocky pleaded not guilty to two charges of assault with a semiautomatic firearm.
    Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 12 Sep. 2023
  • The 9mm semiautomatic handgun, which belonged to the girl’s mother, was inside the girl’s bag and was loaded with four rounds, reports say.
    Cliff Pinckard, cleveland, 28 Sep. 2022
  • Witnesses have told reporters the younger Gray slipped out of math class and returned with a semiautomatic weapon.
    Melissa Cruz, USA TODAY, 8 Sep. 2024
  • At the time of his arrest in the federal case, the man was allegedly driving with 15 pounds of cannabis and a semiautomatic handgun.
    Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 June 2022
  • His mother, Maggie Murdaugh, was shot five times –including to the back of the head – with a semiautomatic rifle and died about 30 yards from her son.
    Fox News, 19 Jan. 2023
  • Customers bring in cars for repairs with handguns and semiautomatic rifles piled on the seats, Mr. Rabee said.
    Cameron McWhirter, WSJ, 16 Sep. 2022
  • The gun the child is alleged to have used, a Taurus 9 mm semiautomatic handgun, was recovered at the scene, police said.
    NBC News, 2 May 2022
  • Investigators found a semiautomatic gun on the sidewalk near the shooting, but police do not know who had the gun at the time of the shooting.
    Fox News, 27 Oct. 2021
  • Lanez was charged last year with shooting Megan Thee Stallion with a semiautomatic firearm.
    Christi Carras, Los Angeles Times, 28 July 2021
  • Paul’s mother, Maggie Murdaugh, was shot at least five times – including in the back of the head – with a semiautomatic rifle and died about 30 yards from her son.
    Fox News, 8 Feb. 2023
  • Lanez pleaded not guilty to charges including assault with a semiautomatic firearm in 2020, which required Megan to have surgery on a foot.
    Vulture, 4 Nov. 2022
  • In New York, lawmakers passed legislation this week to revise its red flag laws and raise the age to buy a semiautomatic weapon from 18 to 21.
    ABC News, 5 June 2022
  • The law initially banned the sale of more than 50 models of semiautomatic rifles and pistols.
    Matthias Gafni, San Francisco Chronicle, 20 June 2021
  • She is considered to be armed with a silver and pink semiautomatic gun.
    Laura Daniella Sepulveda, The Arizona Republic, 6 Dec. 2021
  • The shooter, who then killed himself, used a Glock handgun and an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle, at least one of which was painted with a swastika.
    Tori Otten, The New Republic, 26 Sep. 2023
  • This time, the man, armed with a semiautomatic rifle, was thwarted when an agent saw the barrel of the man's gun sticking out through the bushes as the former president played golf.
    Alana Wise, NPR, 19 Sep. 2024
  • There is a weapon, a semiautomatic weapon, AR-15, high-powered rifle that the suspect was using.
    CBS News, 14 July 2024
  • Read the stories Five years ago in August, a gunman walked into the store and fired hundreds of bullets from a semiautomatic rifle.
    Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'semiautomatic.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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