Background for attack

attack

/əˈtæk/

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noun

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

Examples :

"The bully's attack on the smaller child left him with a bruised arm. "

action war military essential

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noun

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

Examples :

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

action communication society war military politics media emotion attitude statement law negative essential

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noun

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

Examples :

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

military war action essential

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noun

(by extension) The beginning of active operations on anything.

Examples :

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

action military war essential

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noun

An attempt to exploit a vulnerability in a computer system.

Examples :

"The hacker's attack on the school's computer system was successful, exposing student records. "

computing internet technology essential

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noun

Collectively, the bowlers of a cricket side.

Examples :

"The attack bowled brilliantly in the final match, securing a resounding victory. "

sport group essential

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noun

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

Examples :

"The volleyball player's attack sent the ball over the net. "

sport essential

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noun

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

Examples :

"The attackmen on the soccer team are all very strong players. "

sport group position essential

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noun

The sudden onset of a disease or condition.

Examples :

"The sudden attack of the flu kept him home from school. "

medicine disease condition essential

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noun

An active episode of a chronic or recurrent disease.

Examples :

"Her asthma attack made it difficult to breathe during the school play. "

medicine disease essential

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noun

The onset of a musical note, particularly with respect to the strength (and duration) of that onset.

Examples :

"The attack of the first note in the song was sharp and loud. "

music sound technical essential

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noun

(audio) The amount of time it takes 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).

Examples :

"The snare drum's attack is very quick; it sounds sharp and percussive. "

music sound signal technical essential

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verb

To apply violent force to someone or something.

Examples :

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

action military war police essential

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verb

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

Examples :

"She published an article attacking the recent pay cuts."

media politics communication language writing essential

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verb

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

Examples :

"The damp weather is attacking the wooden fence, causing it to rot. "

biology medicine disease process essential

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verb

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

Examples :

"I attacked the meal with a hearty appetite."

action military essential

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verb

To aim balls at the batsman’s wicket.

Examples :

"The bowler attacked the batsman's wicket with a fast, accurate delivery. "

sport essential

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verb

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

Examples :

"The bowler attacked the stumps, aiming to get the batsman out. "

sport essential

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verb

To bat aggressively, so as to score runs quickly.

Examples :

"The baseball team's star player attacked the bases, stealing second and third to score quickly. "

sport essential

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verb

To move forward in an active attempt to score a point, as opposed to trying not to concede.

Examples :

"The soccer player attacked the ball, trying to score a goal. "

sport action military game essential

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verb

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

Examples :

"The cyclist attacked the other riders on the hill, trying to gain a lead. "

sport action vehicle essential