attack

1. 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.
2. 2

   An attempt to cause damage, injury to, or death of an opponent or enemy.; Any 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.
3. 3

   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.
4. 4

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

   • The army timed their attack to coincide with the local celebrations.
5. 5

   The beginning of active operations on anything.broadlyinformal

   • Having washed the plates from dinner, I made an attack on the laundry.
6. 6

   An attempt to exploit a vulnerability in a computer system.

   • birthday attack; denial-of-service attack
7. 7

   Collectively, the bowlers of a cricket side.

8. 8

   Any contact with the ball other than a serve or block which sends the ball across the plane of the net.

9. 9

   The three attackmen on the field or all the attackmen of a team.

10. 10

    The sudden onset of a disease or condition.

    • I've had an attack of the flu.

1. 1

   To apply violent force to someone or something.transitive

   • This species of snake will only attack humans if it feels threatened.
2. 2

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

   • She published an article attacking the recent pay cuts.
3. 3

   To begin to affect; to act upon injuriously or destructively; to begin to decompose or waste.transitive

   • On the fourth of March he was attacked by fever.
   • Hydrofluoric acid […] attacks the glass.
4. 4

   To deal with something in a direct way; to set to work upon.transitive

   • We’ll have dinner before we attack the biology homework.
   • I attacked the meal with a hearty appetite.
5. 5

   To aim balls at the batsman’s wicket.transitive

6. 6

   To set a field, or bowl in a manner designed to get wickets.intransitive

7. 7

   To bat aggressively, so as to score runs quickly.intransitive

8. 8

   To 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.
9. 9

   To accelerate quickly in an attempt to get ahead of the other riders.

10. 10

    (Of a chemical species) To approach a chemical species or bond in order to form a bond with it.physical

syn. abuse · aggress · assail · assault · attack · beat · beleaguer · bepommel · beset · besiege · bombard · charge

ant. defend

1. 1

   Designed or kept for the purpose of confrontation.not-comparable

   • attack dog, attack ad