Barraged

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Subjected to a fast, continuous series of attacks or bombardments ; overwhelmed by a flood of questions, criticisms, or information
2. Hit repeatedly and rapidly by weapons or projectiles ; inundated with a heavy stream of verbal or informational onslaughts
3. Received a nonstop barrage of physical assaults or firepower ; confronted with a deluge of inquiries or data that is difficult to manage

Etymology: "Barraged" is the past tense and past participle of "barrage", so its story is really the story of the verb's root. "Barrage" was taken into English from French around 1859, where it meant "barrage" or "barrier" in the sense of a dam or obstruction across a river. The French word is a relative of "barrier", and the two share the same ancestry, which is why the English words look so similar. The sense of a barrier of obstacles soon grew into the military meaning of a dense curtain of artillery fire, and from there the figurative sense familiar today, a flood of questions, criticisms or attacks. So "barraged" carries the image of being hit by a wall of incoming fire, now applied to words rather than shells.

Synonyms: bombarded, besieged, assailed, inundated, overwhelmed

Antonyms: protected, defended, shielded, rescued, saved