mass shooting

American

[mas shoot-ing] / ˈmæs ˈʃut ɪŋ /

noun

a single incident involving the shooting with one or more firearms of a number of people, but more than two and typically a large number, especially when the victims are random.

There's news of a mass shooting at the stadium, with two fatalities and 25 injured.

Etymology

Origin of mass shooting

First recorded in 1920–25

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.

See Examples For:

mass shooting

A Canadian province is suing OpenAI over its alleged failure to notify authorities about concerning user interactions on ChatGPT prior to the Tumbler Ridge mass shooting.

From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026

Australian police dropped assault charges on Wednesday against a man lauded for his bravery during last year's mass shooting at Bondi Beach.

From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026

The site defines a mass shooting as one in which at least four victims are shot.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026

“Last year’s mass shooting at Florida State University was a tragedy, but ChatGPT is not responsible for this terrible crime,” OpenAI previously told local news station WEAR-TV in a statement.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 1, 2026

The pit was filled with a white-hot mass shooting out little tongues of white flame, and throwing out a heat beside which the scorching sun was a pleasant relief.

From Modern Mythology by Andrew Lang

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023