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
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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
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The Islamists were seen as complicit in India’s worst plane hijack in 1999 and the 2008 attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul, which killed several Indian citizens, including two senior diplomats.—
Happymon Jacob,
Time,
16 Oct. 2025
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Shannon will man larger perimeter players, but not necessarily the point of attack as often.—
Fred Katz,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Chicago has emerged as a focal point in the national debate, with the city's leadership vocally opposing federal immigration crackdowns and raids.—
Adeola Adeosun,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Oct. 2025
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An attempt to set fire to the truck used to carry out the raid was foiled by a Louvre security officer, forcing the burglar to flee, according to the culture ministry’s statement.—
Martin Goillandeau,
CNN Money,
19 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Is this onslaught of messaging and mudslinging working?—
Lauren Green,
The Washington Examiner,
16 Oct. 2025
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The breaches come as the air travel industry has been dealing with an onslaught of cyberattacks that have caused disruptions for customers and ground some of the world’s largest airports to a halt.—
Martin Goillandeau,
CNN Money,
15 Oct. 2025
Noun
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But when Gwen falls into a dream state, the Grabber's assault on the group threatens to derail their plan entirely.—
Megan McCluskey,
Time,
18 Oct. 2025
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Of those six assault cases, Berchtold was only found guilty of rape of a child once and spent one year in jail, Jan told Vulture.—
Alex Gurley,
PEOPLE,
18 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The strike, the largest ever for Kaiser unions, began less than a week ago, with the healthcare giant flying in thousands of replacement staff from around the country to fill critical patient care jobs.—
Pat Maio,
Oc Register,
19 Oct. 2025
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The legality of the strikes has been questioned internationally and at home, and the administration has yet to provide Congress any evidence the people killed were trafficking drugs.—
Nora Gámez Torres,
Miami Herald,
19 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Israel responded with relentless ground and air offensives in Gaza, displacing more than 2 million Palestinians and killing more than 67,600, according to Gaza health authorities.—
Robert Birsel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
13 Oct. 2025
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The ensuing Israeli offensive on Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 66,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.—
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy,
USA Today,
13 Oct. 2025
Noun
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On Sunday, Jeanty was stopped for a loss or no gain on four of his 10 runs against light boxes, and overall, the Las Vegas Raiders were stuffed 11 times on 29 attempts — the most of any team in a game this season.—
Vic Tafur,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
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Ongoing battle over Louisiana's congressional map The controversy grew out of Louisiana’s attempt to account for population shifts after the 2020 census.—
Maureen Groppe,
USA Today,
15 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Is the Shanahan offense now a gap-scheme team?—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
20 Oct. 2025
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He has been missed badly within the Raiders' offense.—
Evan Massey,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Coup de main.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/coup%20de%20main. Accessed 21 Oct. 2025.
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