as in counterattack
an attack made to counter an enemy's attack
the army launched a counteroffensive at dawn
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Recent Examples of counteroffensive
Iran has been firing missiles at Israel and Arab states in a counteroffensive since the joint America-Israeli attack Saturday that killed Khamenei and many top Iranian officials.
—
Jon Gambrell, Fortune, 2 Mar. 2026
The government has conducted a counteroffensive since January with aerial bombardments and ground assaults, despite an official commitment to the peace agreement.
—ABC News, 25 Feb. 2026
Russia still controls roughly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, while Kyiv has recently clawed back limited ground in counteroffensives.
—Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 24 Feb. 2026
Dynamic shifts on the battlefield — with large swaths of Ukrainian land changing hands in offensives and counteroffensives in the early years of the war — have since given way to a conflict of inches.
—Joanna Kakissis, NPR, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for counteroffensive
Jon Gambrell, Fortune, 2 Mar. 2026
The government has conducted a counteroffensive since January with aerial bombardments and ground assaults, despite an official commitment to the peace agreement.
—ABC News, 25 Feb. 2026
Russia still controls roughly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, while Kyiv has recently clawed back limited ground in counteroffensives.
—Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 24 Feb. 2026
Dynamic shifts on the battlefield — with large swaths of Ukrainian land changing hands in offensives and counteroffensives in the early years of the war — have since given way to a conflict of inches.
—Joanna Kakissis, NPR, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for counteroffensive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for counteroffensive
counterattack
Noun
-
After Orlando squandered a chance on the counterattack, Philadelphia capitalized in transition to erase the remaining deficit.—
Kyle Foley,
The Orlando Sentinel,
14 May 2026
-
William Nylander scored a rush goal on the counterattack.—
Fluto Shinzawa,
New York Times,
9 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Counteroffensive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/counteroffensive. Accessed 18 May. 2026.
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