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archery

American  
[ahr-chuh-ree] / ˈɑr tʃə ri /

noun

  1. the art, practice, or skill of an archer.

  2. archers collectively, as in an army.

  3. the equipment of an archer, as bows and arrows.


archery British  
/ ˈɑːtʃərɪ /

noun

  1. the art or sport of shooting with bows and arrows

  2. archers or their weapons collectively

"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

Etymology

Origin of archery

1350–1400; Middle English archerye < Middle French archerie, equivalent to arch ( i ) er archer + -ie -y 3

Explanation

If you like to shoot arrows at a target with a bow, you're a fan of archery. Athletes who compete in archery are called archers. If you decide to try archery, you'll need a bow and some arrows, and ideally a target. These days, archery is mainly a hobby or a sport, but archery was originally a way for people to hunt for food or defend themselves from enemies. In Anglo-French, the word is archerye, from the Latin root arcus, or "bow."

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Vocabulary lists containing archery

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.

See Examples For:

Now with Soulcare, Fadel conducts multiple types of archery workshops in Portland and around the country, including in Colorado, Texas and throughout California.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 30, 2026

Fadel’s archery instruction is as much about how the sport feels in the body as it is about technical precision.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 30, 2026

Yvonne Golomb, 70, said she’d done archery as a high school student in gym class.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 30, 2026

The seemingly militaristic act of archery and peaceful meditation may seem diametrically opposed.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 30, 2026

Later on during archery class, Chiron pulled me aside and told me he’d fixed my problems with Meriwether Prep.

From "The Sea of Monsters" by Rick Riordan

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