shotgun approach

noun

An approach in which the subject is indiscriminate and haphazard, using breadth, spread, or quantity in lieu of accuracy, planning, etc.

“She seems to take the shotgun approach to holiday shopping, buying many smaller, generic gifts for everybody.”

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Meanings

nounshotgun approach (plural shotgun approaches)

plural shotgun approaches

  1. idiomaticAn approach in which the subject is indiscriminate and haphazard, using breadth, spread, or quantity in lieu of accuracy, planning, etc.

    She seems to take the shotgun approach to holiday shopping, buying many smaller, generic gifts for everybody.

Cite this entry
APA

shotgun approach. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shotgun%20approach

MLA

“shotgun approach.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shotgun%20approach. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “shotgun approach,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shotgun%20approach.

Source: shotgun approach on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.