cannonade
/,kænə'neid/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun:
- Intense and continuous artillery fire: A cannonade refers to a prolonged and heavy bombardment using cannons or large guns, typically in a military context.
Verb:
- To attack with cannons or artillery: To cannonade means to bombard a target persistently with heavy gunfire from cannons or similar large-caliber weapons.
Usage Examples
Noun:
- The fortress endured a relentless cannonade for three days.
- The sudden cannonade from the enemy ships shook the coastal town.
Verb:
- The warships began to cannonade the enemy positions at dawn.
- Historians wrote that the army would cannonade the city walls before an assault.
Advanced Usage
"to be subjected to a cannonade": to be under heavy, continuous artillery attack.
- The troops were subjected to a fierce cannonade throughout the night.
"to keep up a cannonade": to sustain a continuous artillery bombardment.
- The general ordered his batteries to keep up a cannonade on the enemy fortifications.
Variants and Related Words
- Cannon (n): A large, heavy piece of artillery, typically mounted on wheels, formerly used in warfare.
- Cannonading (n/gerund): The act or process of bombarding with cannons. (e.g., )
Synonyms
- Noun: Barrage, bombardment, shelling, fusillade.
- Verb: Bombard, shell, pound, blitz.
Related Phrases
- "a cannonade of criticism" (figurative, noun): An intense and sustained verbal attack.
- The new policy faced a cannonade of criticism from the opposition.
Notes on Meaning
- The term cannonade strongly implies both intensity and duration. A single cannon shot is not a cannonade; it is a sustained series of shots.
- While historically associated with cannons, its modern usage can extend to any heavy, continuous artillery or even metaphorical barrages (e.g., of questions, insults).
Noun
- intense and continuous artillery fire
Verb
- attack with cannons or artillery