The term “assault rifle” is a genuine, legitimate term, referring to a class of military rifles. During World War II, the Germans realized that battles were taking place at closer range and a higher pace than in previous wars, calling for a different type of rifle than the battle rifles that had become standard. Compared to a battle rifle, an assault rifle takes a smaller, less powerful round, and places more empasis on being able to fire more shots more quickly, with less emphasis on range or accuracy.
By definition, a true assault rifle is capable of both semiautomatic operation, and also fully-automatic mode, 3-shot burst mode, or both.
True assault rifles are (in blatant violation of the Second Amendment) very strictly regulated and nearly impossible for a civilian to legally obtain or possess in this country.
The fraudulent term “assault weapon” has been coined by anti-American, anti-Constitutional filth as a way to arbitrarily ban certain firearms based on mostly cosmetic traits that have no bearing whatsoever on their suitability for any legitimate or illegitimate use.