mitrailleur

machine gunner

noun mee-trah-YUHR Rare

Usage Note

Mitrailleur is the soldier who operates a mitrailleuse (machine gun). The verb mitrailler means both 'to machine-gun' and colloquially 'to photograph repeatedly'. The feminine mitrailleuse is the weapon itself, making the gender distinction between soldier and weapon worth noting.

Examples

"Le mitrailleur couvrait l'avance des soldats."

Natural Translation

The machine gunner covered the soldiers' advance.

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