tactical
adjective
tac·ti·cal
ˈtak-ti-kəl 
1
: of or relating to combat tactics: such as
a(1)
: of or occurring at the battlefront
a tactical defense
a tactical first strike
(2)
: using or being weapons or forces employed at the battlefront
tactical missiles
b
of an air force
: of, relating to, or designed for air attack in close support of friendly ground forces
2
a
: of or relating to tactics: such as
(1)
: of or relating to small-scale actions serving a larger purpose
(2)
: made or carried out with only a limited or immediate end in view
b
: adroit in planning or maneuvering to accomplish a purpose
Synonyms
Examples of tactical in a Sentence
They gained a tactical advantage by joining with one of their competitors.
He made a serious tactical error.
The planes provided tactical air support for the soldiers on the ground.
Recent Examples on the Web
Surveillance images from inside the church showed the apparent culprit clad in SWAT team style tactical gear who had broken into the building and had been inside for some time before the killing.
—
Nicole Lopez, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 Apr. 2024
The security camera recorded a man walking toward The Satanic Temple (TST) wearing black pants, a black jacket, a black face covering, and a tan-colored tactical vest and gloves.
—Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 18 Apr. 2024
Contestants drew cards to determine the sauce and Laura went through all the cards which was a tactical move that worked in her favor.
—Buddha Lo, Peoplemag, 18 Apr. 2024
The officer demands to see the man's hands and he is handcuffed, which police officials said is standard tactical procedure.
—Christina Hall, Detroit Free Press, 16 Apr. 2024
He could be seen on numerous videos alongside other Proud Boys during the insurrection, dressed in tactical gear, leading chants and wielding the ax handle inside the Capitol.
—Daniel Desrochers, Kansas City Star, 16 Apr. 2024
The military has experimented with using games as training tools since the seventies, and has been integral to the development of computer graphics and tactical simulators.
—Anna Wiener, The New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2024
Develop Both Near-Term And Long-Term Visions Early-stage startup CTOs must bring both a tactical, near-term vision and a strategic, long-term tech vision to the table.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
According to preliminary information, the incident started when five officers assigned to a tactical unit pulled over a vehicle for a traffic stop, the accountability office said in a March news release.
—Omar Jimenez, CNN, 9 Apr. 2024
Nicole Lopez, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 Apr. 2024
The security camera recorded a man walking toward The Satanic Temple (TST) wearing black pants, a black jacket, a black face covering, and a tan-colored tactical vest and gloves.
—Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 18 Apr. 2024
Contestants drew cards to determine the sauce and Laura went through all the cards which was a tactical move that worked in her favor.
—Buddha Lo, Peoplemag, 18 Apr. 2024
The officer demands to see the man's hands and he is handcuffed, which police officials said is standard tactical procedure.
—Christina Hall, Detroit Free Press, 16 Apr. 2024
He could be seen on numerous videos alongside other Proud Boys during the insurrection, dressed in tactical gear, leading chants and wielding the ax handle inside the Capitol.
—Daniel Desrochers, Kansas City Star, 16 Apr. 2024
The military has experimented with using games as training tools since the seventies, and has been integral to the development of computer graphics and tactical simulators.
—Anna Wiener, The New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2024
Develop Both Near-Term And Long-Term Visions Early-stage startup CTOs must bring both a tactical, near-term vision and a strategic, long-term tech vision to the table.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
According to preliminary information, the incident started when five officers assigned to a tactical unit pulled over a vehicle for a traffic stop, the accountability office said in a March news release.
—Omar Jimenez, CNN, 9 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tactical.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near tactical
Cite this Entry
“Tactical.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tactical. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
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