sniper
Britishnoun
Explanation
A soldier or police officer who specializes in shooting a gun very accurately from far away is a sniper. The U.S. Army has a special sniper school for training soldiers. Sometimes criminal shooters are described as snipers, especially if they shoot at people from a hidden spot. However, this word most often means "trained marksman," especially someone who's trained in the armed forces or by law enforcement, like a member of a SWAT team. Sniper comes from the less-common verb snipe, "shoot birds from a hidden place," from the noun snipe, "long-billed marsh bird."
Vocabulary lists containing sniper
"The Sniper" by Liam O’Flaherty
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Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom
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Because of Mr. Terupt
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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.
One prominent example came after the 1992 Ruby Ridge standoff, when the Justice Department decided not to prosecute an FBI sniper who fatally shot the wife of white separatist Randy Weaver.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 9, 2026
Attorney General Janet Reno decided not to pursue charges, but a county prosecutor in the state did, charging the sniper with involuntary manslaughter.
From Slate • Jan. 7, 2026
And then it’s also, ‘Hey, you want to play us man-to-man, one-on-one, I’m enough of a sniper as a passer to make you pay for it.’
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 10, 2025
He added that he had "never held a sniper rifle in my life".
From BBC • Nov. 21, 2025
They were at a Starbucks at the outdoor mall near Grace’s house, sitting out on the patio, and Grace looked like she was waiting for a sniper to take her out.
From "Far from the Tree" by Robin Benway
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.
