first strike

noun

: a preemptive nuclear attack

first-strike

ˈfərs(t)-ˈstrīk 

adjective

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

Perhaps Moscow feared the U.S.’s limited defenses gave it a buffer to absorb the possibly smaller-scale retaliatory strike Russia might muster after being hit by an effective U.S. first strike. —Sébastien Roblin, Popular Mechanics, 27 Feb. 2023

Then, a missile hit in the courtyard behind the building, followed by another missile in the vicinity of the first strike. —Jeremy Barr, Washington Post, 22 Feb. 2023

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, this marked the first strike in the union's two-decade history. —CBS News, 9 Feb. 2023

The home opener arrived a bit behind schedule that year — Apr. 21 to be precise — due to the first strike in Major League Baseball history. —Tim Cowlishaw, Dallas News, 6 Apr. 2022

But while there were nursing strikes in the 1970s, the Royal College of Nursing, the union that represents most nurses in England, held the first strike action in its 116-year history Dec. 15 and 20. —Patrick Smith, NBC News, 18 Jan. 2023

Poseidon is not a first strike weapon that will destroy U.S. cities out of the blue. —Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 17 Jan. 2023

But the company failed to first strike a deal with the film’s star, Scarlett Johansson, whose compensation was tied to a series of box office bonuses. —Matt Donnelly, Variety, 20 Nov. 2022

More than a million people protested during the first strike organized last month, disrupting schools, factories and transport across the country. —Matthew Dalton, WSJ, 11 Feb. 2023

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Word History

First Known Use

1956, in the meaning defined above