fusillade

[ fyoo-suh-leyd, -lahd, -zuh- ]

/ ˈfyu səˌleɪd, -ˌlɑd, -zə- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR fusillade ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a simultaneous or continuous discharge of firearms.

a general discharge or outpouring of anything: a fusillade of questions.

verb (used with object), fu·sil·lad·ed, fu·sil·lad·ing.

to attack or shoot by a fusillade.

Nearby words

fusiform aneurysm, fusiform gyrus, fusil, fusile, fusilier, fusillade, fusilli, fusimotor, fusin, fusion, fusion beat

Origin of fusillade

1795–1805; < French, equivalent to fusill(er) to shoot (see fusil¹) + -ade -ade¹

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

Examples from the Web for fusillade

They can expect a fusillade of incoming from Gillibrand and her colleagues.
Senate Hearings Will Probe Sexual Assaults in the Armed Services|Lloyd Grove|March 13, 2013|DAILY BEAST
All this fusillade of telegrams made but small impression on the recipients, who found in them nothing new.
Mystery at Geneva|Rose Macaulay
With mad cries and a fusillade of shots, the bandits charged.
Frank Merriwell Down South|Burt L. Standish
In a moment we heard a fusillade; the guns were searching out the invader.
Life in the War Zone|Gertrude Atherton

But the king heard the fusillade, and sent orders to cease firing.
Lectures on the French Revolution|John Emerich Edward Dalberg-Acton
After this paroxysm of fear passed they strove for composure only to be again overcome as the fusillade was repeated.
A Daughter of the Union|Lucy Foster Madison

British Dictionary definitions for fusillade

fusillade

/ (ˌfjuːzɪˈleɪd, -ˈlɑːd) /

noun

a simultaneous or rapid continual discharge of firearms

a sudden outburst, as of criticism

verb

(tr) to attack with a fusillade

Word Origin for fusillade

C19: from French, from fusiller to shoot; see fusil 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