shots

noun

plural of shot
1
as in firings
a directed propelling of a missile by a firearm or artillery piece cannon operators often had to use several shots to figure out the range of their targets

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in attempts
an effort to do or accomplish something let's take another shot at the puzzle

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in photos
a picture created from an image recorded on a light-sensitive surface by a camera took a shot of his family for the scrapbook

Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in shooters
a person skilled in shooting at a target a soldier who's an excellent shot with a rifle

Synonyms & Similar Words
5
as in sips
the portion of a serving of a beverage that is swallowed at one time drank a shot of whisky

Synonyms & Similar Words
6
as in guesses
an opinion or judgment based on little or no evidence I have no idea what's different about you, but I'll take a shot: you cut your hair?

Synonyms & Similar Words
7
as in opportunities
a favorable combination of circumstances, time, and place we have a real shot at getting into the championship if we win this next match

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of shots The Boise State defense also produced a turnover-on-downs in the final minutes, batting away several shots at the end zone to hold the Cougars to 10 points. — Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 25 Oct. 2026 Just in the fist six minutes of Saturday’s contest, Adebayo put up four shots. — Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 25 Oct. 2026 While Shadab outsmarted England pace with his brilliant batting, Rauf gave him ample support by sensibly not going for expansive shots. — ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026 And yet 59% of the Hornets’ shots came from three-point range — this is a team that really never stops shooting them, for better or for worse. — Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 24 Oct. 2026 Two men were found dead inside a Long Beach home after one of them exchanged shots with police and sparked a standoff with SWAT officers in a residential neighborhood early Saturday morning, police said. — Los Angeles Times, 18 Oct. 2026 One possibly surprising tool to map out shots for the film to ensure the visual representation of this repetition and cycle was Microsoft Excel. — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 18 Oct. 2026 Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger, who had 19 saves for his third shutout in his last six starts, wasn’t pressured often, and the few shots that did fly his way missed the net. — Kalen Lumpkins, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026 The question, though, with such a limited sample size is whether the 3-point attempts are the right shots in the right spots. — Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 18 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shots
  1. firings
  2. attempts
  3. photos
  4. shooters
  5. sips
  6. guesses
  7. opportunities
  8. tries
Noun
  • The Netflix layoffs included other high-profile firings, like head of film Dan Lin, though his exit had been rumored for some time.
    — Rebecca Ford, Vanity Fair, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Thursday's lawsuit cites public comments made by top Justice Department officials and the president directed toward the plaintiffs as evidence the firings were motivated by political animus.
    — Sarah N. Lynch, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of firings
Noun
  • Assassination attempts against Putin's foes -- routinely denied by the Kremlin -- have been common during his decades in power.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 23 Oct. 2026
  • The Horned Frogs averaged more rushing attempts than passing attempts while going 13-2.
    — Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of attempts
Noun
  • The 35-year-old model shared a bunch of photos on Instagram, leading with a mirror selfie in a plunging black one-piece swimsuit featuring a dramatic neckline and high-cut sides.
    — Danielle Minnetian, FOXNews.com, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Instead, photos posted on social media show three other detainees carrying Nalwamba to a waiting vehicle.
    — Victoria Craw, Washington Post, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of photos
Noun
  • These three games—all benchmarked at the system’s full HD (1080p or 1200p native) resolution—represent competitive shooters, open-world games, and simulations, respectively.
    — Marshall Honorof, PC Magazine, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Hachimura developed into one of the Lakers’ most dependable shooters.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of shooters
Noun
  • Attendees sample tastings of live-fire dishes from various chefs while enjoying sips of premium whiskey and wines from the region.
    — Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 21 Oct. 2026
  • The 44-minute call and the memo Between sips of Guinness—a moment of apparent wincing by Zuckerberg went viral—the pair recounted how their partnership began.
    — Emma Witman, Fortune, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of sips
Noun
  • Today’s puzzle took our testers an average of 5 guesses out of 6, or moderately challenging.
    — New York Times Games, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Getting a word with a small number of guesses is a source of pride for players.
    — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of guesses
Noun
  • In Singapore, where retail payments are already highly efficient, stablecoins may have fewer applications in consumer transactions, while corporate payments could offer greater opportunities, Driver said.
    — Jenny Lee, CNBC, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Organizations that proactively consider employee skill sets and willingness or desire for change can then weigh those skills and desires against firm needs, bringing more opportunities to their employee set.
    — Tim Brackney, Forbes.com, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of opportunities
Noun
  • Edwards had 18 in that burst, while Miami missed on 11 of 12 3-point tries.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Three plays and 4 yards later, Ryland nailed his sixth field goal of the game in six tries, handing the Rams their first loss since 2014 when not allowing a touchdown.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of tries

Phrases Containing shots

Browse Nearby Words

shot in the dark
shots
shots in the arm
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Shots.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shots. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of grotesque

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

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

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
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
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All