It depends on who you’re asking. The term means different things in different bills to different lobbyists and is broadly shorthand for “I think guns are scary.” The lack of a commonly understood definition has made for wildly different applications of various state-level assault weapons bans, and besides simply being confusing, it can have serious consequences. Someone complying in good faith with an assault weapons ban in one state can, without intending to, break the law withe the same gun by travelling to a different state.