as in attack
the act or action of setting upon with force or violence
the Continental Army's attack on the British-Hessian encampment at Trenton, New Jersey, ranks as one of the most brilliant coups de main of the war
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 coup de main
Ryan Reynolds walked arm in arm with Blake Lively, and there were polite air-kisses and an appearance by Martha Stewart—but like the film’s coup de main, the night was filled with surprises.
—
Lauren Sanchez, Vogue, 11 Sep. 2018
Lauren Sanchez, Vogue, 11 Sep. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for coup de main
Noun
-
Israel’s government has repeatedly criticized its counterpart in Australia for failing to address antisemitic attacks in the country.—
Chris Lau,
CNN Money,
21 Feb. 2026
-
At least 77 people were killed in various attacks in Kordofan due to drone warfare in February.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
21 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
There's fear the cases are widely underreported, and the airline industry and authorities aren't aggressively tracking in-air assaults.—
Scott MacFarlane,
CBS News,
16 Feb. 2026
-
Surprise, surprise, JPMorgan Chase and other big banks survived this outrageous assault upon their prerogatives.—
John Cassidy,
New Yorker,
16 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Hannah and Bailey couldn’t get a hold of him, but Jules had called him to warn him that Max got a tip from the SEC about an FBI raid of The Shop.—
Dessi Gomez,
Deadline,
20 Feb. 2026
-
In fact, many say the raid, and talks of taking control of Fulton County elections, specifically targets Black voters.—
AJ Willingham,
AJC.com,
20 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Peace talks between both sides ultimately broke down last year after the ELN staged an offensive in Catatumbo in which dozens of people were killed and more than 50,000 were forced to flee their homes.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
15 Feb. 2026
-
The offensive reflects a larger pattern of atrocities in Sudan’s war, which has created the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.—
Samy Magdy,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The Trojans eventually settled in on offense, but their stifling defense would have to lead the way throughout.—
Ryan Kartje,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Lawmaker Jorge Arreaza, who presented the bill, highlighted these carve-outs to ensure the measure does not shield serious offenses.—
Alessandra Freitas,
CNN Money,
20 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Only 40% of the city’s 260,000 residents managed to flee the onslaught alive, thousands of whom were wounded, the officials said.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Our mammalian brains cannot process this onslaught of trauma here and everywhere; we are not wired to be in constant fight or flight.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Meanwhile, Israel has raised its alert level amid growing indications of a potential joint US-Israel strike on Iran, Israeli sources told CNN.—
Alexandra Banner,
CNN Money,
19 Feb. 2026
-
The Writers Guild made headlines in 2023 for the second-longest strike in the union’s history.—
Cerys Davies,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Russia’s unprovoked aggression has forced millions of Ukrainians to put their lives on hold.—
Ivana Kottasová,
CNN Money,
22 Feb. 2026
-
The Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych was disqualified from his event for wearing a black-and-white helmet depicting athletes killed in Russia’s war of aggression against his homeland.—
Vinson Cunningham,
New Yorker,
21 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Coup de main.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/coup%20de%20main. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
