v., -tacked, -tack·ing, -tacks. v.tr.
- To set upon with violent force.
- To criticize strongly or in a hostile manner.
- To start work on with purpose and vigor: attack a problem.
- To begin to affect harmfully: a disease that attacks the central nervous system.
To make an attack; launch an assault: The enemy attacked during the night.
n.- The act or an instance of attacking; an assault.
- An expression of strong criticism; hostile comment: vicious attacks in all the newspapers.
- Sports.
- An offensive action in a sport or game.
- The players executing such an action.
- The initial movement in a task or undertaking: made an optimistic attack on the pile of paperwork.
- A method or procedure: Our attack on this project will have two phases.
- An episode or onset of a disease, especially an occurrence of a chronic disease: an asthma attack.
- The experience or beginning of a feeling, need, or desire: an attack of hunger; an attack of melancholy.
- Music. The beginning or manner of beginning a piece, passage, or tone.
- Decisiveness and clarity in artistic expression: a careful performance, but one lacking the rigorous attack the work demands.
[French attaquer, from Old French, from Old Italian *estaccare, of Germanic origin.]
attacker at·tack'er n.SYNONYMS attack, bombard, assail, storm, assault, beset. These verbs mean to set upon, physically or figuratively. Attack applies to offensive action, especially to the onset of planned aggression: The commandos attacked the outpost at dawn. Bombard suggests showering with bombs or shells (The warplanes bombarded the town) or with words (The celebrity was bombarded with invitations). Assail implies repeated attacks: Critics assailed the author's second novel. Storm refers to a sudden, sweeping attempt to achieve a victory: "After triumphantly storming the country, (The Economist). Assault usually implies sudden, intense violence: Muggers often assault their victims on dark streets. Beset suggests beleaguerment from all sides: The fox was beset by hunters and hounds.
