Adjacent Words

Artillery definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

ARTIL'LERY, n. This word has no plural.
1. In a general sense, offensive weapons of war. Hence it was formerly used for bows and arrows.
And Jonathan gave his artillery to his lad. 2 Samuel 20.
But in present usage, appropriately,
2. Canon; great guns; ordinance, including guns, mortars and grenades, with their furniture of carriages, balls, bombs and shot of all kinds.
3. In a more extended sense, the word includes powder, cartridges, matches, utensils, machines of all kinds, and horses that belong to a train of artillery.
4. The men who manage cannon and mortars, including matrosses, gunners, bombardiers, cannoniers, or by whatever name they are called, with the officers, engineers and persons who supply the artillery with implements and materials.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: large but transportable armament [syn: artillery, heavy weapon, gun, ordnance]
2: an army unit that uses big guns [syn: artillery, artillery unit]
3: a means of persuading or arguing; "he used all his conversational weapons" [syn: weapon, artillery]

Merriam Webster's

noun (plural -leries) Etymology: Middle English artillerie, from Anglo-French, from artiller to equip, arm, alteration of Old French atillier, from Vulgar Latin *apticulare, from Latin aptare to don, prepare, fit — more at adapt Date: 15th century 1. weapons (as bows, slings, and catapults) for discharging missiles 2. a. large bore crew-served mounted firearms (as guns, howitzers, and rockets) ; ordnance b. a branch of an army armed with artillery 3. means of impressing, arguing, or persuading

Britannica Concise

In modern military science, big guns, howitzers, or mortars operated by crews and of a caliber greater than 15 mm. The earliest artillery, introduced in the 14th cent., were cannon and mortars of bronze, brass, or iron mounted on two-wheeled carriages. Modern artillery dates from the second half of the 19th cent., when advances included steel gun barrels, more powerful gunpowders, and piston mountings that held artillery carriages steady during recoil. Both powder and projectile were encased in a shell, which allowed for faster loading. Since World War II, artillery has been ranked as light (up to 105 mm, for support of ground troops), medium (106-155 mm, for bombardment), and heavy (over 155 mm, for attacking rear installations). See also antiaircraft guns.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. (pl. -ies) 1 large-calibre guns used in warfare on land. 2 a branch of the armed forces that uses these. Derivatives: artillerist n. Etymology: ME f. OF artillerie f. artiller alt. of atillier, atirier equip, arm

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Artillery Ar*til"ler*y, n. [OE. artilrie, OF. artillerie, arteillerie, fr. LL. artillaria, artilleria, machines and apparatus of all kinds used in war, vans laden with arms of any kind which follow camps; F. artillerie great guns, ordnance; OF. artillier to work artifice, to fortify, to arm, prob. from L. ars, artis, skill in joining something, art. See Art.] 1. Munitions of war; implements for warfare, as slings, bows, and arrows. [Obs.] And Jonathan gave his artillery unto his lad. --1 Sam. xx. 40. 2. Cannon; great guns; ordnance, including guns, mortars, howitzers, etc., with their equipment of carriages, balls, bombs, and shot of all kinds. Note: The word is sometimes used in a more extended sense, including the powder, cartridges, matches, utensils, machines of all kinds, and horses, that belong to a train of artillery. 3. The men and officers of that branch of the army to which the care and management of artillery are confided. 4. The science of artillery or gunnery. --Campbell. Artillery park, or Park of artillery. (a) A collective body of siege or field artillery, including the guns, and the carriages, ammunition, appurtenances, equipments, and persons necessary for working them. (b) The place where the artillery is encamped or collected. Artillery train, or Train of artillery, a number of pieces of ordnance mounted on carriages, with all their furniture, ready for marching.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

1. Artillery consists of large, powerful guns which are transported on wheels and used by an army. Using tanks and heavy artillery, they seized the town. ...the sound of artillery fire. N-UNCOUNT: oft N n 2. The artillery is the section of an army which is trained to use large, powerful guns. N-SING-COLL: the N

Easton's Bible Dictionary

1 Sam. 20:40, (Heb. keli, meaning "apparatus;" here meaning collectively any missile weapons, as arrows and lances. In Revised Version, "weapons"). This word is derived from the Latin artillaria = equipment of war.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

ar-til'-er-i (keli): In 1Sa 20:40 (the King James Version) of Jonathan's bow and arrows, replaced in the Revised Version (British and American) by WEAPONS; and in 1 Macc 6:51 (the King James Version) where the Greek words are translated in the Revised Version (British and American) "instruments for casting fire and stones."

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Ordnance, cannon, enginery, great guns. 2. Gunnery, theory of ordnance, art of handling artillery.