arsenal

American  

[ahr-suh-nl, ahrs-nuhl] / ˈɑr sə nl, ˈɑrs nəl /

noun

1. a place of storage or a magazine containing arms and military equipment for land or naval service.

2. a government establishment where military equipment or munitions are manufactured.

3. a collection or supply of weapons or munitions.

4. a collection or supply of anything; store.

   He came to the meeting with an impressive arsenal of new research data.

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arsenal British  

/ ˈɑːsənəl /

noun

1. a store for arms, ammunition, and other military items

2. a workshop or factory that produces munitions

3. a store of anything regarded as weapons

   an arsenal of destructive arguments

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Etymology

Origin of arsenal

1500–10; (< Middle French ) < Italian arzanale < Upper Italian ( Venetian ) arzanà dockyard < Arabic dār ṣināʿah workshop (literally, house of handwork); initial d probably taken as a form of the preposition di from

Explanation

An arsenal is a storehouse for weapons. It wouldn't be wise to let your enemies get a hold of the keys to your arsenal. Not just a place to store weapons, an arsenal can be a place to make weapons or it can mean the collection of weapons themselves: "The air force had just added two top-secret fighter planes to its arsenal." In a more general sense, the word can be a collection of anything used as a weapon, not just military weapons: "She had a whole arsenal of witty comebacks for the lame pickup-lines guys tried out on her."

Example Sentences

Since the start of the war, Ukraine has developed an arsenal of long-range drones which are often able to hit targets many hundreds of miles from its borders.

From BBC • May 4, 2026

Drones have been part of the department’s arsenal for just over a decade, but until recently their use was restricted to a narrow set of incidents, most involving barricaded suspects or bomb threats.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 28, 2026

In March, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a dramatic shift in nuclear deterrence, notably an increase in the atomic arsenal, currently numbering 290 warheads.

From Barron's • Apr. 27, 2026

As always, our money and our attention are the most robust tools in our arsenal.

From Salon • Apr. 25, 2026

This sent a signal to the arsenal, where an operator would identify the radio’s location and broadcast a special message to all the other radios.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover