: a dam placed in a watercourse to increase the depth of water or to divert it into a channel for navigation or irrigation
1
military
: artillery fire laid on a line (see line entry 1 sense 6c) close to friendly troops to screen and protect them
The enemy laid down a barrage of machine-gun fire as our platoon approached the bridge.
2
: a vigorous or rapid outpouring or projection of many things at once
a barrage of phone calls
unleashed a barrage of insults
an oratorical barrage
barraged; barraging
: to deliver a barrage (see barrage entry 2) against
were barraged with bullets
being barraged by campaign ads before the election
Synonyms
Examples of barrage in a Sentence
Noun (2)
the teacher's rapid-fire barrage of homework assignments went by too fast for me to write them all down
Verb
the star athlete was barraged with requests for an autograph
Recent Examples on the Web
R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 14 Dec. 2024
Days of Repentance was retaliation for Iran’s biggest missile attack against Israel to date, the October 1, 2024, ballistic missile barrage against Israel, codenamed Operation True Promise 2 by Tehran.
—Paul Iddon, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024
David Marks, Orlando Sentinel, 13 Nov. 2024
The Germans launched attacks on Bath, York and Exeter in April 1942; a smaller-scale aerial campaign known as the Baby Blitz barraged Britain between January and May 1944.
—Gregory Wakeman, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for barrage 
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Noun
That excitement likely boiled over into an overly enthusiastic barrage.
—R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 14 Dec. 2024
Days of Repentance was retaliation for Iran’s biggest missile attack against Israel to date, the October 1, 2024, ballistic missile barrage against Israel, codenamed Operation True Promise 2 by Tehran.
—Paul Iddon, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024
Verb
Americans are also barraged with a one-sided view about the benefits of drugs.
—David Marks, Orlando Sentinel, 13 Nov. 2024
The Germans launched attacks on Bath, York and Exeter in April 1942; a smaller-scale aerial campaign known as the Baby Blitz barraged Britain between January and May 1944.
—Gregory Wakeman, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for barrage
Dictionary Entries Near barrage
Cite this Entry
“Barrage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/barrage. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
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