ammunition

noun

am·​mu·​ni·​tion ˌam-yə-ˈni-shən How to pronounce ammunition (audio)
Synonyms of ammunitionnext
1
a
: the projectiles with their fuses, propelling charges, or primers fired from guns
b
: cartridges
c
: explosive military items (such as grenades or bombs)
2
: material for use in attacking or defending a position
ammunition for the defense lawyers

Synonyms of ammunition

Relevance
See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of ammunition in a Sentence

The troops were supplied with weapons and ammunition. be certain that all of your accusations are true, lest you just give them ammunition to claim that all of them are false
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
The new 2nd Amendment case figures to be a major test of what kinds of firearms and ammunition are off-limits to state or federal regulation. — Los Angeles Times, 30 June 2026 McBride said Robinson's DNA was found on the towel and the rifle, and similar ammunition was found at his home. — N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 6 July 2026 Kylian Mbappe was once again the game-breaker, breaching Sweden's defence to open the scoring, but the supporting cast just provide ammunition from every angle. — Thom Harris, New York Times, 30 June 2026 Robinson signing with Boston not only weakens a strength of the Knicks but gives a formidable opponent ammunition to make their own run this upcoming season. — Tom Rende, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for ammunition

Word History

Etymology

earlier, "military supplies," borrowed from Middle French amonition, probably variant of munition, monition munition

First Known Use

1607, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of ammunition was in 1607

Rhymes for ammunition

See All Rhymes for ammunition

Browse Nearby Words

ammophilous
ammunition
ammunition scuttle
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Ammunition.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ammunition. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

ammunition

noun
am·​mu·​ni·​tion ˌam-yə-ˈnish-ən How to pronounce ammunition (audio)
1
a
: objects (as bullets) fired from guns
b
: explosive objects (as bombs) used in war
2
: material that may be used in attacking or defending a position
results of the study provided more ammunition

More from Merriam-Webster on ammunition

Nglish: Translation of ammunition for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about ammunition

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All