ar·til·ler·y

[ahr-til-uh-ree]
noun
1.
mounted projectile-firing guns or missile launchers, mobile or stationary, light or heavy, as distinguished from small arms.
2.
the troops or the branch of an army concerned with the use and service of such weapons.
3.
the science that treats of the use of such weapons.

Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English artil(le)rie, artelry, art(u)ry armaments, ballistic engines < Anglo-French, Middle French artillerie, equivalent to Old French artill(ier) to equip, arm, alteration, by association with art art1, of atill(i)er to set in order, put on armor (< Vulgar Latin *apticulāre, derivative of Latin aptāre to put on (armor, ornaments, etc.; see adapt); -i- for expected -ei- perhaps by association with atirier; see attire) + -erie -ery

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To artillery
00:10
Artillery is always a great word to know.
So is callithumpian. Does it mean:
a fool or simpleton; ninny.
a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.
Collins
World English Dictionary
artillery (ɑːˈtɪlərɪ) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
1.  guns, cannon, howitzers, mortars, etc, of calibre greater than 20 mm
2.  troops or military units specializing in using such guns
3.  the science dealing with the use of guns
4.  devices for discharging heavy missiles, such as catapults or slings
 
[C14: from Old French artillerie, from artillier to equip with weapons, of uncertain origin]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

artillery
late 14c., "warlike munitions," from O.Fr. artillerie (14c.), from artillier "to provide with engines of war" (13c.), which probably is from M.L. articulum "art, skill," dim. of L. ars (gen. artis) "art." But some would connect it with L. articulum "joint," and still others with O.Fr. atillier "to equip,"
altered by infl. of arte. Sense of "engines for discharging missiles" (catapults, slings, bows, etc.) is from late 15c.; that of "ordnance, large guns" is from 1530s.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary

artillery definition


  1. n.
    handguns; grenades. (Underworld.) : Where does Frank stash the artillery?
  2. n.
    flatware; cutlery. : Who put out the artillery? I didn't get a fork.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Easton
Bible Dictionary

Artillery definition


1 Sam. 20:40, (Heb. keli, meaning "apparatus;" here meaning collectively any missile weapons, as arrows and lances. In Revised Version, "weapons"). This word is derived from the Latin artillaria = equipment of war.

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
Cite This Source
Example sentences
They have advance warning of raids and all main leaders, artillery and military
  hardware is relocated in advance.
It is decades since the two sides lobbed artillery shells at each other's
  broadcasting facilities.
His began by shelling the city with artillery and bombing it from the air, then
  sent in tanks and paratroopers.
As it happened, routers turned out to be the indispensable heavy artillery of
  the digital revolution.
Image for artillery
Copyright © 2013 Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
  • Please Login or Sign Up to use the Recent Searches feature
FAVORITES
RECENT