shooting gallery

noun

1
: a usually covered range equipped with targets for practice with firearms
2
slang : a place where one can obtain narcotics and shoot up

Examples of shooting gallery in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The Toy Story Midway Mania shooting gallery dark ride in DCA’s Pixar Pier will close on April 6 for a seasonal refurbishment that is expected to last at least a month. Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 30 Mar. 2026 Not bad for five weeks at a shooting gallery, the gunman said. Jonathan Miles, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026 Mechanically, most encounters are just a series of shooting galleries, which doesn’t really play to Battlefield’s strengths. Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 9 Oct. 2025 Earth still lives inside a shooting gallery, with thousands of objects—totaling about 48.5 tons per year, according to NASA—entering the atmosphere. Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 27 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for shooting gallery

Word History

First Known Use

1836, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of shooting gallery was in 1836

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Cite this Entry

“Shooting gallery.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shooting%20gallery. Accessed 7 Apr. 2026.

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