gunfight

American  

[guhn-fahyt] / ˈgʌnˌfaɪt /

noun

1. a battle between two or more people or groups armed with guns, especially a confrontation between two gunfighters using revolvers in the frontier days of the American West.

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gunfight British  

/ ˈɡʌnˌfaɪt /

noun

1. a fight between persons using firearms

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Other Word Forms

• gunfighter noun
• gunfighting noun

Etymology

Origin of gunfight

First recorded in 1650–60; gun ¹ + fight

Example Sentences

It was a pre-Thanksgiving afternoon that few Americans could have imagined: U.S. troops defending themselves in a gunfight in the streets of the American capital.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 27, 2025

Too often England have arrived at an Australian gunfight armed only with knives.

From BBC • Sep. 23, 2025

He recalls meeting with Yeltsin and others at 3 a.m., just a few hours after the gunfight at Ostankino.

From Slate • Oct. 9, 2023

The extreme stress the body experiences in a gunfight slows critical thinking and motor skills, said Massad Ayoob, a police firearms trainer since the 1970s.

From Salon • Mar. 20, 2023

There was a moment, just a moment, like the hesitation in a cheap Western movie just before the gunfight starts.

From This Side of Wild by Gary Paulsen