barrage

[buh-rahzh; especially British bar-ahzh for 1, 2, 4, 5; bahr-ij for 3]

See more synonyms for barrage on Thesaurus.com

noun

Military. a heavy barrier of artillery fire to protect one's own advancing or retreating troops or to stop the advance of enemy troops.
an overwhelming quantity or explosion, as of words, blows, or criticisms: a barrage of questions.
Civil Engineering. an artificial obstruction in a watercourse to increase the depth of the water, facilitate irrigation, etc.

Mycology. an aversion response of sexually incompatible fungus cultures that are growing in proximity, revealed by a persistent growth gap between them.

verb (used with object), bar·raged, bar·rag·ing.

to subject to a barrage.

Origin of barrage

1855–60; < French: blocking, barring off, barrier, equivalent to barr(er) to bar¹ + -age -age; artillery sense by ellipsis from French tir de barrage barrier fire

Synonyms for barrage

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2. volley, torrent, deluge, burst, storm.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for barrage

shower, salvo, hail, fusillade, bombardment, storm, volley, blast, gunfire, stream, deluge, burst, onslaught, assault, surge, attack, rain, torrent, battery, cannonade

Examples from the Web for barrage

Contemporary Examples of barrage

The barrage and immediacy of these images magnifies these horrors.
You, Too, Could Be a Homicidal Zealot
Joel Gold
July 7, 2014
Ultimately, The Slap becomes something heartwarming amidst the barrage of stinging smacks.
Viral Video of the Day: Slapping Brings People Together
Alex Chancey
June 25, 2014
Styles quickly removed the photo from his Twitter account, but not before fielding a barrage of angry tweets.
Pharrell, Harry Styles, and Native American Appropriation
Amy Zimmerman
June 4, 2014
What possible change can any one citizen instigate against that barrage of anti-intellectual, gun-toting paranoia?
As Parents We’re All Gun Violence Cowards
William Giraldi
May 30, 2014
I became numb to the barrage of smells: citrus disinfectants, burning trash, sewage, sweat, and diesel.
How I’ll End the War: My First Week Back in Afghanistan
Nick Willard
May 1, 2014

Historical Examples of barrage

It was on the brink of the Barrage itself that I spoke to Bailey.
It Happened in Egypt
C. N. Williamson
But we did not for a long time leave the influence of the Barrage.
It Happened in Egypt
C. N. Williamson
I could fancy him grinning behind the sheen of his barrage at my question.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, March 1930
Various
And all around him the anti-aircraft guns were placing a barrage of death.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, October, 1930
Various
Our barrage had lifted, but we saw no sign of advancing infantry.
Pushed and the Return Push
George Herbert Fosdike Nichols, (AKA Quex)

British Dictionary definitions for barrage

barrage

noun

military the firing of artillery to saturate an area, either to protect against an attack or to support an advance
an overwhelming and continuous delivery of something, as words, questions, or punches
a usually gated construction, similar to a low dam, across a watercourse, esp one to increase the depth of water to assist navigation or irrigation
fencing a heat or series of bouts in a competition

verb

(tr) to attack or confront with a barragethe speaker was barraged with abuse

Word Origin for barrage

C19: from French, from barrer to obstruct; see bar 1

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

Word Origin and History for barrage

1859, "action of barring; man-made barrier in a stream," from French barrer "to stop," from barre "bar," from Old French barre (see bar (n.1)). Artillery sense is 1916, from World War I French phrase tir de barrage "barrier fire" intended to isolate the objective. As a verb by 1917. Related: Barraged; barraging.