attack

plural attacks

1. An attempt to cause damage, injury to, or death of an opponent or enemy.

   From 1906 to 1960, there were forty-six recorded shark attacks, half of which were fatal.

   1983, Richard Ellis, The Book of Sharks, Knopf, →ISBN, page 161

   1 more example

   One particularly damaging, but often ignored, effect of conflict on education is the proliferation of attacks on schools[…]as children, teachers or school buildings become the targets of attacks. Parents fear sending their children to school. Girls are particularly vulnerable to sexual violence.

   2013 July 19, Mark Tran, “Denied an education by war”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 6, page 1

   1. gamesAny of several specific maneuvers, skills, or special abilities that a character can use to inflict damage against opponents.

      Combat in Mimesis Online is nice and simple. You click on your target […] and then keep right-clicking your chosen attack from the drop down menu. Every time you right click on the attack, your character will swing, shoot, etc.

      2002 March, Aaron Butler, “Mimesis Online (PC)”, in GameSpy.com, archived from the original on 16 Dec 2002

      1 more example

      Kleavor has several attacks that it's worth roughly memorising: a charge attack, where it runs at you quickly; a jump attack, that causes a pillar of rock to spike out from under the ground; and a spin attack that does damage in a circle around it.

      2022 January 28, Chris Tapsell, “Pokémon Legends Arceus Kleavor boss fight: How to beat Kleavor”, in Eurogamer.ner

2. An attempt to detract from the worth or credibility of, a person, position, idea, object, or thing, by physical, verbal, emotional, or other assault.

   They claimed the censorship of the article was an attack on free speech.

   1 more example

   “I came down like a wolf on the fold, didn’t I ? Why didn’t I telephone ? Strategy, my dear boy, strategy. This is a surprise attack, and I’d no wish that the garrison, forewarned, should escape. …”

   1913, Robert Barr, chapter 4, in Lord Stranleigh Abroad

3. A time in which one attacks; the offence of a battle.

   The army timed their attack to coincide with the local celebrations.

4. broadlyinformalThe beginning of active operations on anything.

   Having washed the plates from dinner, I made an attack on the laundry.

5. computingAn attempt to exploit a vulnerability in a computer system.

   birthday attack; denial-of-service attack

6. ball gamesCollectively, the bowlers of a cricket side.
7. ball gamesAny contact with the ball other than a serve or block which sends the ball across the plane of the net.

   Synonyms: hit, spike

8. ball gamesThe three attackmen on the field or all the attackmen of a team.
9. medicineThe sudden onset of a disease or condition.

   I've had an attack of the flu.

10. An active episode of a chronic or recurrent disease.
11. entertainmentThe onset of a musical note, particularly with respect to the strength (and duration) of that onset.

    Eric Reed was a curious choice as pianist, since his busy Petersonian attack is the antithesis of Lewis's, but he acquitted himself with panache, […]

    2004, Gary Giddins, Weather Bird: Jazz at the Dawn of Its Second Century, page 322

    Antonyms: decay, release

12. acousticsThe amount of time taken for the volume of an audio signal to go from zero to maximum level (e.g. an audio waveform representing a snare drum hit would feature a very fast attack, whereas that of a wave washing to shore would feature a slow attack).
13. beveragesThe initial sensory impact of a wine.
14. IndiaSouthabbreviationShort for heart attack.

present singular third person attacks · participle present attacking · participle past attacked · past attacked · obsolete participle past attackt · obsolete past attackt · dialectal obsolete participle past attackted · dialectal obsolete past attackted · first person past singular attacked · archaic present second person singular attackest · past second person singular attacked · archaic past second person singular attackedst · present singular third person attacks · archaic present singular third person attacketh · past singular third person attacked · past plural attacked

1. transitiveTo apply violent force to someone or something.

   This species of snake will only attack humans if it feels threatened.

   1 more example

   Yesterday, December seventh, 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.

   1941 December 8, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, 0:00 from the start, in Day of Infamy Speech, Washington, D.C., page 1

   Synonyms: savage

2. transitiveTo aggressively challenge a person, idea, etc., with words (particularly in newspaper headlines, because it typesets into less space than "criticize" or similar).

   She published an article attacking the recent pay cuts.

   2 more examples

   It was puzzling to read a column that claimed to be attacking me, yet espoused the main ideas in my article.

   1988 December 11, John D'Emilio, “Enemies, Anger, and Militance”, in Gay Community News, volume 16, number 22, page 5

   In its God-like prime, The Simpsons attacked well-worn satirical fodder from unexpected angles, finding fresh laughs in the hoariest of subjects.

   2012 June 3, Nathan Rabin, “TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “Mr. Plow” (season 4, episode 9; originally aired 11/19/1992)”, in The A.V. Club, Fusion Media Group

3. transitiveTo begin to affect; to act upon injuriously or destructively; to begin to decompose or waste.

   Hydrofluoric acid […] attacks the glass.

   1866, Balfour Stewart, An Elementary Treatise on Heat

   1 more example

   On the fourth of March he was attacked by fever.

   1849–1861, Thomas Babington Macaulay, chapter XXV, in The History of England from the Accession of James the Second, volume (please specify |volume=I to V), London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, →OCLC

4. transitiveTo deal with something in a direct way; to set to work upon.

   I attacked the meal with a hearty appetite.

   2 more examples

   We’ll have dinner before we attack the biology homework.

   He filled a basin with water, and, with an old brush and piece of sandsoap, attacked the stove.

   1922, Joseph Hergesheimer, Mountain Blood

5. transitiveball gamesTo aim balls at the batsman’s wicket.
6. intransitiveball gamesTo set a field, or bowl in a manner designed to get wickets.
7. intransitiveball gamesTo bat aggressively, so as to score runs quickly.
8. ball gamesTo move forward in an active attempt to score a point, as opposed to trying not to concede.

   Six successive defeats had left them rooted to the bottom of the Premier League table but, clearly under instructions to attack from the outset, Bolton started far the brighter.

   2011 October 15, Michael Da Silva, “Wigan 1 - 3 Bolton”, in BBC Sport

9. cyclingTo accelerate quickly in an attempt to get ahead of the other riders.
10. physicalchemistry(Of a chemical species) To approach a chemical species or bond in order to form a bond with it.

1. not comparableDesigned or kept for the purpose of confrontation.

   attack dog, attack ad