bombard

[ verb bom-bahrd, buhm-; noun bom-bahrd ]

See synonyms for bombard on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to attack or batter with artillery fire.
to attack with bombs.

to assail vigorously: to bombard the speaker with questions.
Physics. to direct high energy particles or radiations against: to bombard a nucleus.

noun

the earliest kind of cannon, originally throwing stone balls.
Nautical. bomb ketch.

an English leather tankard of the 18th century and earlier, similar to but larger than a blackjack.
Obsolete. a leather jug.

Origin of bombard

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English (noun), Medieval Latin bombarda “stone-throwing engine” (Latin bomb(us) “booming noise” + -arda noun suffix); see bomb, -ard

Other words for bombard

3	beset, harass, hound, besiege

See synonyms for bombard on Thesaurus.com

Other words from bombard

bom·bard·er, noun
bom·bard·ment, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use bombard in a sentence

What is noticeable is that ISIS is bombarding the town with tank shells and mortars less than it was before.
U.S. Planes are Blowing the Hell out of ISIS at Kobani, But … | Jamie Dettmer | October 9, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The South responded in kind by bombarding an equally lonely patch of ocean, just north of the border.
Smoke Rings, Mystery Backpacks and Gun-Toting Robots: The Weird Wartech of the Korean Conflict | Kyle Mizokami | April 3, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
He would be bombarding her with accusations for having let me leave—he never let me leave the house.
Inside Gaddafi’s Harem: The Story of a Girl’s Abduction | Annick Cojean | August 29, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
And by bombarding Gaza, Israel is only helping them bolster their support.
Palestine’s Inevitable Third Intifada | Rula Jebreal | November 21, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
This really threw her for a loop, so she started bombarding him with questions.
10 Juiciest Bits From Rielle Hunter’s Tell-All John Edwards Memoir | | June 21, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST

While the French were bombarding that city from their ships, the Americans, led by Pulaski, tried to storm it .
The Story of the Thirteen Colonies | H. A. (Hlne Adeline) Guerber
Barker ran round the room after him, bombarding him with demands and entreaties.
The Napoleon of Notting Hill | Gilbert K. Chesterton
As we entered, our artillery hastened to prepare for its further work of bombarding at close quarters.
Recollections of Thirty-nine Years in the Army | Charles Alexander Gordon
The rest of the fleet than began bombarding the place, and in seven or eight minutes it was reduced to ruins.
How Britannia Came to Rule the Waves | W.H.G. Kingston
The Boers, thinking the trucks full of soldiers, immediately commenced bombarding them, till they exploded with terrific force.
South African Memories | Lady Sarah Wilson

British Dictionary definitions for bombard

bombard

verb(bɒmˈbɑːd) (tr)

to attack with concentrated artillery fire or bombs
to attack with vigour and persistence: the boxer bombarded his opponent with blows to the body

to attack verbally, esp with questions: the journalists bombarded her with questions
physics to direct high-energy particles or photons against (atoms, nuclei, etc) esp to produce ions or nuclear transformations

noun(ˈbɒmbɑːd)

an ancient type of cannon that threw stone balls

Origin of bombard

C15: from Old French bombarder to pelt, from bombarde stone-throwing cannon, probably from Latin bombus booming sound; see bomb

Derived forms of bombard

bombardment, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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