ATTACKED Synonyms: 161 Similar and Opposite Words

attacked

verb

past tense of attack

as in assaulted

to take sudden, violent action against our dog unexpectedly attacked the mailman, sinking his teeth into the startled man's leg

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in slammed

to criticize harshly and usually publicly the mayor and all his aides were attacked mercilessly in the press when the scandal erupted

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as in tackled

to start work on energetically Courtney attacked the huge mess in her room with determination and enthusiasm

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of attacked Moments after the landscaper was attacked, officers got a call about a car in the middle of the street nearby. —

Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 19 May 2026 Denise attacked Djena again, beating her until Mohamed and their eldest son, Ahmed, pulled her off. —

Yudhijit Bhattacharjee, New Yorker, 18 May 2026 After a municipal employee was shot to death outside a school, Manzo instructed police to use lethal force against any criminal who attacked citizens or resisted arrest. —

Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 18 May 2026 The agency also claimed at the time that two other men, including Aljorna, came out of a nearby apartment and attacked the agent. —

Ashley Killough, CNN Money, 18 May 2026 There has been some concern raised internally that Padres hitters have at times been caught off-guard by how some starting pitchers have attacked them. —

Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 May 2026 Conservative activists and Republican officials attacked him over past support for diversity, equity and inclusion programs and comments tied to campus protests and university governance. —

Garrett Shanley, Miami Herald, 18 May 2026 As expected, the bigger fish immediately attacked and ate them. —

Rick Burton, Sportico.com, 18 May 2026 What happened to you, that you were virtually attacked with a bad ruling from court. —

Haris Alic, The Washington Examiner, 11 May 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for attacked

Verb

Four years earlier, Gaff had barged into the home of Vesey and assaulted her while both her children, both under the age of 2, were in another room.

— Corky Siemaszko, NBC news, 15 May 2026
In a 4-3 decision, the appeals court found that Weinstein's trial judge allowed prosecutors to call women who said Weinstein had assaulted them to testify, even though their accusations did not specifically relate to the entertainment mogul's charges.

— Lauryn Overhultz, FOXNews.com, 15 May 2026