An '''anti-tank rifle''' is an [[anti-materialmateriel rifle]] designed to penetrate the [[vehicle armor|armour]] of [[armoured fighting vehicle]]s, particularly [[tank]]s. The usefulness of rifles for this purpose ran from the introduction of tanks in [[World War I]] until the [[Korean War]]. While medium and heavy tank armour became too thick to be penetrated by rigid projectiles from rifles that could be carried by a single soldier, anti-tank rifles continued to be used against other "soft" targets, though [[recoilless rifle]]s and [[rocket-propelled grenade]]s such as the [[bazooka]] were also introduced for infantry close-layer defense against tanks.