attack
- 01 A2 Elementary
n.an act of trying to hurt or kill someone using physical force.
n.a physical assault or offensive action intended to cause damage, injury, or death.
Simple“The army launched a surprise attack on the enemy base at midnight.”
In context“The suddenness of the aerial attack left the defending forces with little time to coordinate a meaningful counter-offensive.”
Antonyms - 02 B1 Intermediate
n.a strong verbal or written criticism of someone or their ideas.
n.a vigorous verbal or written attempt to detract from the credibility or worth of a person, policy, or idea.
Simple“The politician faced a personal attack from the newspapers this morning.”
In context“The senator's speech was a scathing attack on the government's failure to address rising inflation and housing costs.”
- 03 B1 Intermediate
n.a sudden start of an illness, like a heart attack or a panic attack.
n.the sudden onset or active episode of a disease or physiological condition.
Simple“He was rushed to the hospital after suffering a sudden heart attack.”
In context“The patient reported a history of asthma attacks that were typically triggered by high pollen counts during the spring months.”
- 04 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.an attempt to break into a computer system or steal data.
n.a malicious attempt to exploit vulnerabilities in a computer network or system to gain unauthorized access.
Simple“The company's website was down for hours due to a cyber attack.”
In context“The security team identified a sophisticated phishing attack designed to harvest the login credentials of senior executives.”
- 05 C2 Proficiency
n.the way a musical note starts, or how fast a sound reaches its full volume.
n.the onset of a musical note or the time taken for an audio signal to reach its peak amplitude.
Simple“The drummer used special sticks to give the cymbals a sharper attack.”
In context“By adjusting the compressor's attack settings, the engineer was able to preserve the natural punch of the kick drum while controlling the overall peaks.”
- 06 A2 Elementary
v.to try to hurt someone or something using physical force.
v.to apply violent force to a person or object with the intent to cause harm.
Simple“The dog will only attack if it feels that its owner is in danger.”
In context“The rebel forces planned to attack the supply convoy as it passed through the narrow mountain pass.”
- 07 B1 Intermediate
v.to criticize someone or something very strongly in public.
v.to aggressively challenge or criticize a person, idea, or policy.
Simple“The report attacks the company for its poor safety record.”
In context“Opposition leaders were quick to attack the new tax proposal, calling it a burden on middle-class families.”
- 08 B2 Upper Intermediate
v.to start dealing with a problem or a piece of work with a lot of energy.
v.to deal with a task or problem in a direct, energetic, or determined manner.
Simple“We need to attack this project immediately if we want to finish on time.”
In context“The team decided to attack the technical debt first, knowing that the legacy code would otherwise hinder future development.”
- 09 B2 Upper Intermediate
adj.describes something designed or kept for fighting or protection.
adj.intended for or used in confrontation or offensive operations.
Simple“The police used an attack dog to find the suspect hiding in the woods.”
In context“The military deployed several attack helicopters to provide close air support for the ground troops.”
Usage attack took · attack drones · attacks a day
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂éd Proto-Italic *ad Proto-Italic *ad- Latin ad- Italian a- Proto-Indo-European *dews-? Proto-Indo-European *dus- Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ Proto-Indo-European *dwi- Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ Proto-Indo-European *dwís Latin dis- Old French des- Proto-Indo-European *(s)teyg- Proto-Germanic *stikaną Proto-West Germanic *stekander. Old French atachier Old French destachier Middle French destacherbor. Italian distaccare Italian staccare Italian attaccarebor. French attaquer French attaquebor. English attack Borrowed from French attaque, derived from the verb attaquer, from Italian attaccare (“to join, attach”) (used in attaccare battaglia (“to join battle”)), from Frankish *stakkijan (“to stick, stick to, attach”). Doublet of attach. Displaced native Middle English onresen, from Old English onrǣsan (“to attack”); and Middle English resinge (“an assault, attack”) (compare Old English onrǣs (“an attack”)).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.