as in to attack
to criticize harshly and usually publicly
The comic ended the show with a rant in which he potshot an assortment of celebrities.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of potshot
Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 7 Apr. 2025
Soon, the pair are playing long-distance chess, air drumming, and taking competitive potshots at one another’s dishware.
—Graham Hillard, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 28 Feb. 2025
Instead Trump has taken verbal potshots at California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and President Biden, suggesting their actions are to blame for the failure to contain the fires.
—Niall Stanage, The Hill, 8 Jan. 2025
New Hampshire’s lower chamber has four hundred people, nearly double the second-largest state legislature in the country, so there were plenty of representatives willing to take potshots at the hawk and belittle the children who wanted to honor it.
—Casey Cep, The New Yorker, 28 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for potshot
Noun
In a separate tweet, Ackman also took potshots at U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
—Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 7 Apr. 2025
Soon, the pair are playing long-distance chess, air drumming, and taking competitive potshots at one another’s dishware.
—Graham Hillard, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 28 Feb. 2025
Instead Trump has taken verbal potshots at California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and President Biden, suggesting their actions are to blame for the failure to contain the fires.
—Niall Stanage, The Hill, 8 Jan. 2025
New Hampshire’s lower chamber has four hundred people, nearly double the second-largest state legislature in the country, so there were plenty of representatives willing to take potshots at the hawk and belittle the children who wanted to honor it.
—Casey Cep, The New Yorker, 28 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for potshot
Recent Examples of Synonyms for potshot
Verb
-
In a May 2, 2017 text, Ventura was clear with Khorram that Combs allegedly attacked her.—
Rolling Stone,
Rolling Stone,
16 June 2025
-
Even after December 7, 1941, when Japan attacked some of the territories that McKinley had claimed—Hawaii, the Philippines, and Guam—people from Kansas or California didn’t necessarily see any reason to don uniforms.—
Daniel Immerwahr,
New Yorker,
16 June 2025
Noun
-
The exchange of strikes represented the latest salvo since a surprise attack by Israel two days earlier aimed at decimating Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program.—
Jon Gambrell,
Los Angeles Times,
14 June 2025
-
Its opening salvo usually sees the arrival of anywhere between 9,000 and 10,000 riders, with between 17,500 and 18,000 people descending on Motala for the 196-mile race.—
Gregory Wakeman,
Smithsonian Magazine,
13 June 2025
Verb
-
But, in the end, Berg’s life became proof of a darker truth, one that is newly relevant in the Trump era: doors that swing open can also slam shut.—
Emily Nussbaum,
New Yorker,
9 June 2025
-
President Donald Trump said his close relationship with Elon Musk might be over after the world's richest man and former top White House adviser spent the past few days slamming the president's signature tax and policy bill.—
Joey Garrison,
USA Today,
6 June 2025
Noun
-
Crow-Armstrong, Michael Busch and Matt Shaw added to the home run barrage as the Cubs evened the series before a second straight sellout of 41,084, which included thousands of road-tripping Cubs fans.—
Paul Sullivan,
Chicago Tribune,
7 June 2025
-
Russia conducted its second-largest missile and drone attack on Ukraine since the start of its invasion in 2022, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) whose graph illustrate the response to Kyiv's drone barrage on Russian military airfields.—
Brendan Cole,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 June 2025
Verb
-
The violence broke out over a video of a man, alleged to be Druze, insulting the prophet Muhammad.—
Taylor Luck,
Christian Science Monitor,
11 June 2025
-
To many watching, Elon Musk’s decision to publicly insult President Trump seemed self-destructive, if not outright irrational.—
Joel Shulman,
Forbes.com,
8 June 2025
Noun
-
But Alcaraz roared back to win the third set, punctuating it with a forehand volley into the open court that snapped Sinner’s streak of 32 straight sets won at majors.—
Adam Zagoria,
Forbes.com,
8 June 2025
-
In post-production, each frame was stitched together with a little bit of CGI (okay, a lot of CGI) to get that slow-motion backbend as his character, Neo, dodges a volley of air-distorting bullets.—
Joe Salas
June 07,
New Atlas,
7 June 2025
Verb
-
After the period, the TNT crew scolded Luostarinen for not keeping his stick on the ice.—
Jordan McPherson,
Miami Herald,
15 June 2025
-
The estranged wife of actor Scott Wolf was seemingly detained by law enforcement during an Instagram livestream, during which she can be heard scolding officers and alleging she was abused.—
Jessica Schladebeck,
New York Daily News,
13 June 2025
Noun
-
An Israeli fusillade around noon Sunday and in the afternoon saw four areas in Tehran targeted, including major commercial thoroughfares, according to state media.—
Nabih Bulos,
Los Angeles Times,
15 June 2025
-
Tung kept UConn in the game despite a fusillade from Penn State in the first period.—
Dom Amore,
Hartford Courant,
31 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Potshot.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/potshot. Accessed 20 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share