weapon

American  

[wep-uhn] / ˈwɛp ən /

noun

1. any instrument or device for use in attack or defense in combat, fighting, or war, as a sword, rifle, or cannon.

2. anything used against an opponent, adversary, or victim.

   the deadly weapon of satire.

3. Zoology. any part or organ serving for attack or defense, as claws, horns, teeth, or stings.

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verb (used with object)

1. to supply or equip with a weapon or weapons.

   to weapon aircraft with heat-seeking missiles.

weapon British  

/ ˈwɛpən /

noun

1. an object or instrument used in fighting

2. anything that serves to outwit or get the better of an opponent

   his power of speech was his best weapon

3. any part of an animal that is used to defend itself, to attack prey, etc, such as claws, teeth, horns, or a sting

4. a slang word for penis

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Other Word Forms

• outweaponed adjective
• superweapon noun
• unweaponed adjective
• weaponed adjective
• weaponless adjective

Etymology

Origin of weapon

First recorded before 900; Middle English wepen, Old English wǣpen; cognate with German Waffe, Old Norse vāpn, Gothic wēpna (plural)

Explanation

A weapon is something used to hurt someone. Soldiers use weapons like guns and even sometimes use "weapons of mass destruction" — like bombs. In school, the only weapon you should use is a spitball. A solider engaging in battle needs a weapon, as does a police officer defending herself against a violent attacker. Some weapons are specially designed for killing or injuring, such as guns and crossbows, while in other cases an ordinary object, like a stick, can be used as a weapon. The Old English root is wæpen, "instrument of fighting or defense." The spelling is tricky, and most people just have to memorize the ea in weapon.

Example Sentences

In Geneva, they were discussing a new deal on the nuclear file, including the fate of Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium that could be used to make a nuclear weapon.

From BBC • Apr. 8, 2026

Instead, Anthropic is letting cybersecurity specialists and engineers in the open-source community work with Mythos to use the model as a defensive weapon "sort of arming them ahead of time," Krieger explained.

From Barron's • Apr. 7, 2026

The Bruins held Booker, the Longhorns’ top offensive weapon, to six points on three-for-23 shooting.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 4, 2026

This includes Massachusetts, where courts consider factors such as the characteristics of any weapon used when evaluating whether a self-defense shooting was proportional.

From Slate • Mar. 27, 2026

“No! Besides, you really wanna tell Unremarkables that a secret police force arrested our parents for stealing a powerful weapon and took them away in an invisible jet?”

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas

Related Words

• ammunition
• bomb
• cannon
• firearm
• gun
• knife
• machete
• machine gun
• missile
• nerve gas
• pistol
• revolver
• rifle
• shotgun
• sword
• tear gas