first strike

Definition of first strike

: a preemptive nuclear attack

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Examples of first strike in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Then in the deciding game, after struggling all day, Viles threw her first strike of the day. — Buddy Collings, orlandosentinel.com, "Lake Mary’s Sierra Poole, Oviedo win girls bowling state championships," 5 Nov. 2020 Instead of a first-play bomb, the hosts used four plays to march 75 yards for the first strike. — Michael Casagrande | Mcasagrande@al.com, al, "How Alabama-Ole Miss played out, one quarter at a time," 11 Oct. 2020 With enough TELs, North Korea can demonstrate its ability to launch a first strike and still have enough in reserve for a second volley. — Jon Herskovitz, Bloomberg.com, "Kim Jong Un Set to Show Off Nuclear Advances in Message to Trump," 9 Oct. 2020 At nearly 6-6 with 36-inch arms, Steele’s length often enabled him to land the first strike, which was especially effective in his snaps against Michael Brockers. — John Owning, Dallas News, "Film room: How did the Cowboys' rookie starters fare against the LA Rams?," 16 Sep. 2020 While any vaccine could be available for use in the U.S., the government has to first strike a deal with the vaccine-maker. — Julie Mazziotta, PEOPLE.com, "Everything You Need to Know About a Possible Coronavirus Vaccine," 11 Sep. 2020 Angry production workers voted overwhelmingly for the first strike in 20 years in a contract dispute that focused more on subcontracting, seniority and work rules than on wages and benefits. — Washington Post, "Hyundai and LG Chem team up to invest in electric-vehicle and battery start-ups," 22 June 2020 The first strike by Machinists Union Local S6 in two decades comes as production already has fallen six months behind, partly because of the pandemic. — BostonGlobe.com, "Bath Iron Works shipbuilders vote to strike," 21 June 2020 The War of the Worlds began their wrath there, on the outskirts, where life was deemed so wretched as to earn even the extraterrestrials’ first strike. — Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, "Revenge of the Suburbs," 19 June 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'first strike.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries near first strike

first things first

Statistics for first strike

Last Updated

17 Nov 2020

Cite this Entry

“First strike.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/first%20strike. Accessed 26 Nov. 2020.

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