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attack
has definitions from the fields of music,sport,law,criminal law,military,medicine
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[ verb ] (military) launch an attack or assault on; begin hostilities with, as in warfare
Synonyms Examples "Hitler attacked Poland on September 1, 1939 and started World War II" "Serbian forces assailed Bosnian towns all week" Used in print (Bonnie Prudden, "The Dancer and the Gymnast"...)First of the problems attacked would be fatigue and emotional tension , since action relieves both . (Guy Endore, Voltaire! Voltaire!...)But while the two men are riding into the country , where they are going to dinner , they are attacked in the dark of the forest by a band of thieves , who strip them of everything , including most of their clothes . (Evan Esar, Humorous English; a guide to comic ,...)`` While Henry_Morgan was escorting Miss_Vera_Green from the church social last Saturday night , a savage dog attacked them and bit Mr._Morgan on the public_square '' . |
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[ noun ] (military) an offensive against and enemy (using weapons)
Examples "the attack began at dawn" Used in print (The Dallas Morning News,...)`` We always like to keep the ball as much as we can against Denver because they have such an explosive attack '' , explained Stram . (LeRoy Fothergill, "Biological Warfare", in Peter...)Thus , an enemy would probably use this weapon for attack on static population centers such_as large cities . A solid immunity is the one effective circumstance whereby attack by a specific agent can be neutralized . Our major problem is what an enemy might accomplish in an initial attack on a target . In this case , then , the military objective was accomplished with an epidemic agent solely through the results secured in the initial attack . |
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[ noun ] the onset of a corrosive or destructive process (as by a chemical agent)
Examples "the film was sensitive to attack by acids" "open to attack by the elements" Related terms |
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[ verb ] attack verbally, in speech or writing
Examples "The editors of the left-leaning paper attacked the new House Speaker" Used in print (J. H. Hexter, "Thomas More: On the Margins...)It was not even in writing Latin epigrams , sometimes bawdy ones , or in translating Lucian from Greek into Latin or in defending the study of Greek against the attack of conservative academics , or in attacking the conservative theologians who opposed Erasmus 's philological study of the New_Testament . (Guy Bolton, The Olympians....)Alastor was published only to be savagely attacked , contemptuously ignored . |
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[ verb ] take the initiative and go on the offensive
Synonyms Examples : "The Serbs attacked the village at night" "The visiting team started to attack" Used in print (Howard Nemerov, "Themes and Methods: The Early...)The horrifying humor , the specifically sexual embarrassment of the joke gone_wrong , the monstrous image of the fat man dressed_up as a whore dressing_up as a baby ; the epiphany of that quivering flesh ; the bringing_together around it of the secret liaison between indolent , mindless sensuality and sharp , shrewd talent , cleverness with an occasional touch of genius ( which , however , does not know `` how to attack the problem of suffering '' ) ; the miraculous way in which music , revelation and death are associated in a single instant - all this seems a triumph of art , a rather desperate art , in itself ; beyond itself , also , it evokes numerous and distant resonances from the entire body of Mann 's work . |
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[ verb ] attack someone physically or emotionally
Examples "The mugger assaulted the woman" "Nightmares assailed him regularly" Used in print (Newark Evening News...)I grant that the dog may not be really protective , based on his training , but if you were roaming the streets looking_for a purse to snatch or a young_lady to molest , how quick would you be to attack a person strolling with a dog ? (Peter Eldersveld, "Faith Amid Fear"...)It is said that fear in human_beings produces an odor that provokes animals to attack . (Thomas Anderson, Here Comes Pete Now....)Baldness was attacking his pate . |
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[ noun ] (sport) an offensive move in a sport or game
Examples "they won the game with a 10-hit attack in the 9th inning" Used in print (Rocky Mountains News, [Denver, Colorado],...)Dick_McAuliffe cracked the first of his two doubles against Lefty Don_Rudolph to open the Bear 's attack . With Mickey_Mantle and Yogi_Berra both out_of_action due_to injuries , the American_League champs still mounted a 15 - hit attack against a parade of eight Cincinnati pitchers , the most ever used by one team in a series game . (The New York Times,...)Skorich , however , is a strong advocate of a balanced attack - split between running and passing . Related terms |
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[ noun ] intense adverse criticism
Examples "Clinton directed his fire at the Republican Party" "the government has come under attack" "don't give me any flak" Used in print (The Dallas Morning News,...)Statements by other legislators that Dallas is paying for all its water_program by local bonds , and that less populous places would benefit most by the pending bill , did not sway Cotten 's attack . (J. H. Hexter, "Thomas More: On the Margins...)It was not even in writing Latin epigrams , sometimes bawdy ones , or in translating Lucian from Greek into Latin or in defending the study of Greek against the attack of conservative academics , or in attacking the conservative theologians who opposed Erasmus 's philological study of the New_Testament . Related terms |
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[ noun ] ideas or actions intended to deal with a problem or situation
Synonyms Examples "his approach to every problem is to draw up a list of pros and cons" "an attack on inflation" "his plan of attack was misguided" Used in print (Norman Kent, "The Watercolor Art of Roy M. Mason"...)Then I plan my attack : the parts I will finish first , the range of values , the accenting of minor details - all_in_all , mechanics of producing the finished job with a maximum of crispness . Related terms |
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[ verb ] set to work upon; turn one's energies vigorously to a task
Examples "I attacked the problem as soon as I got out of bed" Used in print (Jesse W. Grimes and Wesley Allinsmith, "Compuls...)By the time the child first attacks the actual problem of reading , he is completely familiar and at_ease with all_of the elements of words . |
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[ noun ] (music) a decisive manner of beginning a musical tone or phrase
Synonyms Used in print (Hampton Stone, The Man Who Looked Death...)He demonstrated by playing an imaginary piano , doing a staccato passage with a broadly exaggerated attack . Related terms |
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[ verb ] begin to injure
Examples "The cancer cells are attacking his liver" "Rust is attacking the metal" Related terms |
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[ noun ] (medicine) a sudden occurrence of an uncontrollable condition
Examples "an attack of diarrhea" Related terms affliction seizure paroxysm occlusion stroke heart_attack flare touch hysterics anxiety_attack |
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[ noun ] turning your attention to a problem or a job etc.
Synonyms Examples "his attack on the problem was misguided" "he did not make a direct assault on her affections" |
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