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as in trap
a device or scheme for capturing another by surprise
thinking that he was getting into his assigned limousine, the diplomat did not realize that he was the victim of an ambush as he was being lured into his captor's car
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in to attack
to lie in wait for and attack by surprise
the king's enemies planned to ambush the royal coach on the way to Paris and capture the king
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ambush
Los Angeles Times,
12 June 2026
Putting a hard conversation on the calendar removes the ambush.
—
Angela Haupt,
Time,
11 June 2026
Rebecca Alter,
Vulture,
15 June 2026
Overnight on July 4, 2025, more than a dozen heavily armed antifa militants belonging to a Dallas-area antifa chapter ambushed Homeland Security personnel guarding the ICE holding site near Fort Worth.
—
Mia Cathell,
The Washington Examiner,
15 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for ambush
Noun
Kim is believed to have hired a hitman for the ambush and killing of a man in San Jose on June 27, 2016.
—
Los Angeles Times,
12 June 2026
Putting a hard conversation on the calendar removes the ambush.
—
Angela Haupt,
Time,
11 June 2026
Verb
He feels emotionally ambushed, and what plays out is as if Marriage Story were an absolute chucklefest, as Lestat gets increasingly worked up and jealous over Louis’s relationships with other men.
—
Rebecca Alter,
Vulture,
15 June 2026
Overnight on July 4, 2025, more than a dozen heavily armed antifa militants belonging to a Dallas-area antifa chapter ambushed Homeland Security personnel guarding the ICE holding site near Fort Worth.
—
Mia Cathell,
The Washington Examiner,
15 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for ambush
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ambush
Noun
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The Kerch road and rail crossing, opened by Putin in 2018, has been the target of previous Ukrainian attacks.
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Two other individuals survived that attack, the military said.
Noun
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The lone bright spot from the midfield was the solid presence of Pedri who played out of position and still had a decent all-around performance, but even he was criticized by many on social media for falling into a familiar trap.
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Golden State sent more traps than usual and didn’t allow the former Notre Dame standout to get clean looks at the rim or from the 3-point line.
Verb
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Louis rips his spine out, dislocates his jaw, and reads Claudia’s diary entries about how she was repeatedly assaulted by him.
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Prosecutors are moving to dismiss charges against a man in Minneapolis who was accused of assaulting federal officers.
Noun
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Cape Verde surprises once again When the World Cup draw first came out, Sunday’s group stage game in Miami between two-time champion Uruguay and tournament debutant Cape Verde did not seem like a particularly compelling matchup.
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Sensors give engineers more ways to see inside concrete, steel, soil and water, turning some surprise closures into repairs planned months earlier.
Noun
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Further down the street, a troupe of drummers held court with a mix of snares and bass.
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Studio engineers often added percussion accents like shakers or tambourines, or handclaps layered on the snares, using a combination of texture and mathematical precision to keep heads and hips moving.
Verb
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After making off with a substantial stack of cash from her job to fund a new life with boyfriend Sam Loomis (John Gavin), she gets waylaid by a rainstorm and stops to spend the night at the Bates Motel, run by awkward mama’s boy Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins).
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Then, minutes into the speech, Santos posted on X that he had been waylaid at the airport.
Verb
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Night is falling in Altadena as bats circle, peacocks wail and photographer Kevin Cooley tries to capture what’s left of a tree.
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The new glasses can play music, translate languages and answer questions about a person’s surroundings by capturing images with the glasses’ cameras, like Meta’s Ray-Ban and Oakley glasses.
Cite this Entry
“Ambush.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ambush. Accessed 26 Jun. 2026.
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