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attack

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Attack
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at⋅tack

  [uh-tak]
–verb (used with object)
1. to set upon in a forceful, violent, hostile, or aggressive way, with or without a weapon; begin fighting with: He attacked him with his bare hands.
2. to begin hostilities against; start an offensive against: to attack the enemy.
3. to blame or abuse violently or bitterly.
4. to direct unfavorable criticism against; criticize severely; argue with strongly: He attacked his opponent's statement.
5. to try to destroy, esp. with verbal abuse: to attack the mayor's reputation.
6. to set about (a task) or go to work on (a thing) vigorously: to attack housecleaning; to attack the hamburger hungrily.
7. (of disease, destructive agencies, etc.) to begin to affect.
–verb (used without object)
8. to make an attack; begin hostilities.
–noun
9. the act of attacking; onslaught; assault.
10. a military offensive against an enemy or enemy position.
11. Pathology. seizure by disease or illness: an attack of indigestion.
12. the beginning or initiating of any action; onset.
13. an aggressive move in a performance or contest.
14. the approach or manner of approach in beginning a musical phrase.
Use attack in a Sentence
Origin:
1590–1600; earlier atta(c)que < MF atta(c)quer < It attaccare to attack, attach

Related forms:
at⋅tack⋅a⋅ble, adjective
at⋅tack⋅er, noun

Synonyms:
1. storm, charge. Attack, assail, assault, molest all mean to set upon someone forcibly, with hostile or violent intent. Attack is the most general word and applies to a beginning of hostilities, esp. those definitely planned: to attack from ambush. Assail implies vehement, sudden, and sometimes repeated attack: to assail with weapons or with gossip. Assault almost always implies bodily violence: to assault with intent to kill. To molest is to harass, to threaten, or to assault: He was safe, and where no one could molest him. 4. censure; impugn, oppugn, abuse. 9. onset, encounter.

Antonyms:
1, 4. defend. 9. defense.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
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Attack
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at·tack   (ə-tāk')   
v.   at·tacked, at·tack·ing, at·tacks

v.   tr.

  1. To set upon with violent force.

  2. To criticize strongly or in a hostile manner.

  3. To start work on with purpose and vigor: attack a problem.

  4. To begin to affect harmfully: a disease that attacks the central nervous system.

v.   intr.
To make an attack; launch an assault: The enemy attacked during the night.
n.  

  1. The act or an instance of attacking; an assault.

  2. An expression of strong criticism; hostile comment: vicious attacks in all the newspapers.

  3. Sports

    1. An offensive action in a sport or game.

    2. The players executing such an action.

    3. The initial movement in a task or undertaking: made an optimistic attack on the pile of paperwork.

    4. A method or procedure: Our attack on this project will have two phases.

    5. Music The beginning or manner of beginning a piece, passage, or tone.

    6. Decisiveness and clarity in artistic expression: a careful performance, but one lacking the rigorous attack the work demands.

    1. The initial movement in a task or undertaking: made an optimistic attack on the pile of paperwork.

    2. A method or procedure: Our attack on this project will have two phases.

    3. Music The beginning or manner of beginning a piece, passage, or tone.

    4. Decisiveness and clarity in artistic expression: a careful performance, but one lacking the rigorous attack the work demands.

  5. An episode or onset of a disease, especially an occurrence of a chronic disease: an asthma attack.

  6. The experience or beginning of a feeling, need, or desire: an attack of hunger; an attack of melancholy.

    1. Music The beginning or manner of beginning a piece, passage, or tone.

    2. 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.]
at·tack'er n.
Synonyms: 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 President] is obliged to storm Capitol Hill" (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.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

attack 
1600, from Fr. attaquer (16c.), from Florentine attaccare (battaglia) "join (battle)," thus the word is a doublet of attach, which was also used 15c.-17c. in the sense now reserved to attack.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: at·tack
Function: noun
: an attempt to prove something invalid or incorrect esp. through judicial procedures attack on the will as not properly witnessed>; specifically : an attempt to have the judgment of a court corrected or overruled
collateral attack
: an attack on a judgment made during or by a proceeding brought for a different purpose —see also habeas corpus ad subjiciendum at HABEAS CORPUS
direct attack
: an attack on a judgment made in a proceeding (as an appeal) brought for the specific purpose of having the judgment corrected or overturned —attack verb
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 1at·tack
Pronunciation: &-'tak
Function: transitive verb
: to begin to affect or to act on injuriously attacked the kidneys> <attacked by a fever>

Main Entry: 2attack
Function: noun
: a fit of sickness; especially : an active episode of a chronic or recurrent disease
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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attack at·tack (ə-tāk')
n.
An episode or onset of a disease, often sudden in nature.

at·tack' v.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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