gunner
Americannoun
-
a person who operates a gun or cannon.
-
Army. an occupational title in the artillery.
-
Navy. a person skilled in handling ammunition and gunnery equipment.
-
Marine Corps. a warrant officer who may be given any one of a number of assignments.
-
British.
-
Military. a private in the artillery.
-
Informal. any officer or enlisted person assigned to the artillery.
-
-
a person who hunts with a gun.
noun
-
a serviceman who works with, uses, or specializes in guns
-
navy (formerly) a warrant officer responsible for the training of gun crews, their performance in action, and accounting for ammunition
-
gnr. (in the British Army) an artilleryman, esp a private
-
a person who hunts with a rifle or shotgun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of gunner
Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; see origin at gun 1, -er 1
Vocabulary lists containing gunner
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.
Mr Morris joined the Army at the age of 17 and during the war served as an anti-aircraft gunner in the Royal Artillery.
From BBC • Apr. 25, 2025
Mr Dennett, a Navy gunner from Wallesey, Merseyside, told the King how he was "grateful" to be alive after so many young men died fighting during the war.
From BBC • Jun. 4, 2024
Valery Shyrokov, 47, an infantryman and mortar gunner who volunteered in 2022 and served, among other places, in the bloody battle for Bakhmut, uses the word “disappointed,” but his manner suggests something far stronger.
From Los Angeles Times • May 27, 2024
The gunner survived and is now recovering, Lawyer said a few days later.
From New York Times • May 14, 2024
Fie turned out to be Jamaican—a rear gunner in the RAF, shot down last week—perhaps they’d been hoping to get Allied invasion plans out of him?
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
