blitzkrieg

noun

blitz·​krieg ˈblits-ˌkrēg How to pronounce blitzkrieg (audio)
1
: war conducted with great speed and force
specifically : a violent surprise offensive by massed air forces and mechanized ground forces in close coordination
2
blitzkrieg transitive verb

Examples of blitzkrieg in a Sentence

the stunned survivors of the crash were then confronted with a blitzkrieg of insensitive questions from the media the war began with a blitzkrieg that was designed to shock the enemy into submission
Recent Examples on the Web Russia's conventional blitzkrieg was beaten back by Ukrainian guerrillas. John Bacon, USA TODAY, 22 Feb. 2024 Rolling Stone reported that Trump's team had been planning the endorsement blitzkrieg for more than a month in order to embarrass the Florida governor. Nathaniel Rakich, ABC News, 17 Jan. 2024 An annihilation strategy emphasizes using a single event or a rapid series of actions to collapse an enemy’s ability or will to fight, such as occurred with Germany’s six-week blitzkrieg campaign against France in 1940. Andrew F. Krepinevich, Foreign Affairs, 12 Dec. 2023 These days, just turning on the television seems to trigger a blitzkrieg of F-bombs. Beth Decarbo, WSJ, 10 Dec. 2023 These are the latest in Domino’s promotional blitzkrieg of 2023. Chris Morris, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2023 The Nazi blitzkrieg of Poland followed and World War II erupted. Danuta Hamlin, Fox News, 1 Sep. 2023 More than 8 million Ukrainians died in World War II, many under German occupation after Hitler unleashed his blitzkrieg, or lightning war, against the Soviet Union in June 1941. Sergii Mukaieliants, Washington Post, 23 Aug. 2023 Armies can employ blitzkrieg tactics, but treasury departments must eschew quick victories and stay the course. Barry Eichengreen, Foreign Affairs, 21 June 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'blitzkrieg.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

German, from Blitz lightning + Krieg war

First Known Use

1937, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of blitzkrieg was in 1937

Dictionary Entries Near blitzkrieg

Cite this Entry

“Blitzkrieg.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blitzkrieg. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

blitzkrieg

noun
blitz·​krieg ˈblits-ˌkrēg How to pronounce blitzkrieg (audio)
: a sudden violent enemy attack
blitzkrieg verb
Etymology

German, literally, "lightning war"

More from Merriam-Webster on blitzkrieg

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