arsenal

noun

ar·se·nal ˈärs-nəl

ˈär-sə-

Synonyms of arsenal

: an establishment for the manufacture or storage of arms and military equipment

The city is home to a federal arsenal.

: a collection of weapons

: store, repertoire

the team's arsenal of veteran players

Examples of arsenal in a Sentence

The city is home to a federal arsenal. Doctors have a broad arsenal of medicines to choose from. the team's arsenal of veteran players

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.

Combinations of these factors make the kamikaze drone a very important weapon in Moscow’s arsenal. — Abhishek Bhardwaj, Interesting Engineering, 14 Aug. 2026 Experts say North Korea has often used its rivals' drills as a pretext to ramp up its testing activities to expand its weapons arsenals and promote public support for leader Kim Jong Un. — ABC News, 13 Aug. 2026 Armed with an arsenal of tools – from DIY inventions to GPS trackers to drones – Daniel scours the turbulent Vistula River on an all-consuming search, desperate for answers. — Leo Barraclough, Variety, 12 Aug. 2026 With help from the nearby Southwest Harbor Fire Department, the crew of the Tremont Volunteer Fire Department sprang into action, shutting down the road and dousing the Tesla using an arsenal of firehoses. — Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 12 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for arsenal

Word History

Etymology

earlier, "dockyard for the construction and repair of naval vessels," borrowed from Middle French archenal, arsenail, arsenal (in reference to the naval dockyard of Venice), borrowed (with conformation of the final to -al -al entry 2) from Upper Italian (Venice) arzanà, presumably alteration (by metanalysis, with the initial taken as the preposition d', di "from") of darsenà (attested in Genoese, earlier in Medieval Latin as darsena, darsana), borrowed from Arabic dār al-ṣināʽa "place of manufacture," from dār "house" + al "the" (assimilated to aṣ) + ṣināʽa "manufacture" (derivative of ṣanaʽa "to make")

Note: Forms with final -ale (as arsenale, arzanale, arzenale) are attested in Italian in the sixteenth century and may be the immediate source of the English word. The French forms with -al may reflect these, though attested about a century earlier. As arzanà the Venetian word is attested in the text of Dante's Inferno ("nell'arzanà de' Viniziani," XXI, 7).

First Known Use

1555, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler

The first known use of arsenal was in 1555

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arsenal

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Style

“Arsenal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/arsenal. Accessed 17 Aug. 2026.

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Kids Definition

arsenal

noun

ar·se·nal ˈärs-nəl

-ᵊn-əl

: a place for the manufacture or storage of arms

: a collection of weapons

arsenal

noun

Synonyms of arsenal

Examples of arsenal in a Sentence

Word History

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Kids Definition

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