active shooter
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of active shooter
First recorded in 1965–70
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The mother of 17-year-old Cain Lee Clark first called police at 9:42 a.m., about two hours before the first reports of an active shooter at the mosque.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2026
Police rushed to the Islamic Center of San Diego Monday after receiving a call about an active shooter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026
Initially, police deployed to an area around a high school with which the suspect was associated, until they received a call of an active shooter at the Islamic Center.
From Barron's ● May 18, 2026
Just like other students at Brown University, she was distraught after receiving an active shooter alert from the university's department of public safety.
From BBC ● Dec. 14, 2025
That panel’s 77-page report revealed that a total of 376 law enforcement officers descended upon the school in an uncoordinated manner, disregarding their own active shooter training.
From Salon ● May 23, 2024
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
