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attack

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verb

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Synonym Chooser

How does the verb attack contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of attack are assail, assault, bombard, and storm. While all these words mean "to make an onslaught upon," attack implies taking the initiative in a struggle.

plan to attack the town at dawn

When could assail be used to replace attack?

The words assail and attack are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, assail implies attempting to break down resistance by repeated blows or shots.

assailed the enemy with artillery fire

When might assault be a better fit than attack?

Although the words assault and attack have much in common, assault suggests a direct attempt to overpower by suddenness and violence of onslaught.

commandos assaulted the building from all sides

When would bombard be a good substitute for attack?

The synonyms bombard and attack are sometimes interchangeable, but bombard applies to attacking with bombs or shells.

bombarded the city nightly

When can storm be used instead of attack?

While the synonyms storm and attack are close in meaning, storm implies attempting to break into a defended position.

preparing to storm the fortress

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 attack
Noun
The attack on Ras Isa Fuel Port marked a widening of the U.S. bombing campaign, which had previously targeted Houthi forces and their command centers elsewhere in Yemen. Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Apr. 2025 After the attack, the juvenile creature was seen floating lifeless in the water, video footage shows. Brendan Rascius, Miami Herald, 18 Apr. 2025
Verb
The move, which came late Tuesday after the White House hours earlier attacked the press over coverage of Trump’s administration agenda, sparked outrage from the White House Correspondents’ Association and other press freedom groups. Dominick Mastrangelo, The Hill, 16 Apr. 2025 For instance, a trans person is more likely to be attacked, but for a Black trans person, the numbers are astronomical. Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 16 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for attack
Recent Examples of Synonyms for attack
Noun
  • Pakistan responded by aerial raids, downed an Indian military aircraft and captured an Indian pilot, who was later released.
    Time, Time, 25 Apr. 2025
  • Initially, authorities said Darlene Carey simply granted them access to the residence, thus justifying the raid that uncovered the guns.
    Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 23 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • The New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC) later ruled the fight a no contest after Garcia failed a drug test related to the bout.
    Trent Reinsmith, Forbes.com, 27 Apr. 2025
  • Frequent bouts of rheumatic fever left the kid’s heart so weakened that one childhood doctor predicted a lifespan of 16 years.
    Greg Evans, Deadline, 26 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • According to the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office, Brittany Walker and Samuel Payton allegedly assaulted the victim, a 44-year-old man who uses a wheelchair, in a Detroit apartment on Jan. 29, FOX 2 Detroit reported.
    Bailey Richards, People.com, 28 Apr. 2025
  • Perhaps the single most disturbing sequence in The Fall of Diddy is surveillance camera video from 2016 that shows Combs assaulting his then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura in a California hotel.
    Matthew Carey, Deadline, 26 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • However, prosecutors allege that a drunk and angry Read knowingly slammed her SUV into her boyfriend -- Boston police officer John O'Keefe -- outside of a get-together at another officer's home and left him to die in a blizzard in January 2022.
    Jon Haworth, ABC News, 23 Apr. 2025
  • The estate's lawsuit said Clyde Leach’s Tesla Model Y suddenly accelerated, went off the road and slammed into a pillar at an Ohio gas station.
    Mike Scarcella, USA Today, 23 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • Do not approach water, wet objects, or metal items.
    STAR-TELEGRAM WEATHER BOT, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 19 Apr. 2025
  • In a recent video shared by the shelter, Shawn lit up as a volunteer approached his kennel.
    Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • The onslaught has been so extensive that the United States now has its highest average tariff rate in over a century − and more seem on the way.
    Daniel de Visé, USA Today, 21 Apr. 2025
  • When two of the men turn and run, Tommy’s left with one other man to defend against the onslaught as the people on the rooftops fire into the street and the non-combatants cower inside.
    Sara Netzley, EW.com, 21 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • The weapons cause respiratory seizures, vomiting, burning sensations and other debilitating symptoms.
    Katya Soldak, Forbes.com, 22 Apr. 2025
  • Negative symptoms may include irritability, confusion, hallucinations, seizures, sleepiness, breathing problems, heart attacks, kidney failure and muscle damage, according to the CDC.
    Greta Cross, USA Today, 18 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • Such is the case with this 15-minute fictionalized short inspired by the traumatic aftermath of a real event — when a group of Proud Boys in 2022 stormed a Drag Queen Story Hour program at the East Bay’s San Lorenzo Library and proceeded to hurl gay and transphobic slurs there.
    Randy Myers, Mercury News, 16 Apr. 2025
  • Soon after Noboa took office in 2023, the country suffered back-to-back emergencies: a notorious gang leader escaped from prison; days later, a band of gunmen stormed a major TV station and took the staff hostage.
    Max Saltman, CNN Money, 11 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Attack.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/attack. Accessed 1 May. 2025.

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