ATTACKING • FREE TRANSLATOR.ORG • Definition of Attacking

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/ətˈækɪŋ/ Listen

verb

Attack v. t. (past & past part. attacked; pres. part. attacking)

1.

To fall upon with force; to assail, as with force and arms; to assault. "Attack their lines."

2.

To assail with unfriendly speech or writing; to begin a controversy with; to attempt to overthrow or bring into disrepute, by criticism or satire; to censure; as, to attack a man, or his opinions, in a pamphlet.

3.

To set to work upon, as upon a task or problem, or some object of labor or investigation.

4.

To begin to affect; to begin to act upon, injuriously or destructively; to begin to decompose or waste. "On the fourth of March he was attacked by fever." "Hydrofluoric acid... attacks the glass."

Synonyms: To Attack, Assail, Assault, Invade. These words all denote a violent onset; attack being the generic term, and the others specific forms of attack. To attack is to commence the onset; to assail is to make a sudden and violent attack, or to make repeated attacks; to assault (literally, to leap upon) is to attack physically by a had-to-hand approach or by unlawful and insulting violence; to invade is to enter by force on what belongs to another. Thus, a person may attack by offering violence of any kind; he may assail by means of missile weapons; he may assault by direct personal violence; a king may invade by marching an army into a country. Figuratively, we may say, men attack with argument or satire; they assail with abuse or reproaches; they may be assaulted by severe temptations; the rights of the people may be invaded by the encroachments of the crown.

Attack v. i. To make an onset or attack.

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Etymology of 'Attacking'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Attacking" Quotes from Famous Books

... turned up to-day; took his familiar corner seat; tugged at his old moustache; caressed his new beard, and listened to SEALE HAYNE recklessly attacking the sacred institution of Justiciary of ...

— Punch, Or The London Charivari, Vol. 102, February 27, 1892 • Various

... in attacking the same problem, first studied the principle and behaviour of a well-known toy—the model invented by Penaud, which, driven by the tension of india-rubber, sustains itself in the air for a few seconds. He constructed over thirty modifications of this model, and spent ...

— The Dominion of the Air • J. M. Bacon

... malleable. The metal when it is cast gives a peculiar creaking noise when twisted or bent, which proceeds from the crystalline structure of the metal. This crystallization is quite clearly manifested by attacking the surface of the metal, or that of tin plate, ...

— A System of Instruction in the Practical Use of the Blowpipe • Anonymous

... a hut, which is generally erected near to some river or lake, continual bathing being supposed to have some effect in removing the disorder, or alleviating the misery of the patient. Few instances of recovery have been known. There is a disease called the nambi which bears some affinity to this, attacking the feet chiefly, the flesh of which it eats away. As none but the lowest class of people seem to suffer from this complaint I imagine it proceeds in a great ...

— The History of Sumatra - Containing An Account Of The Government, Laws, Customs And - Manners Of The Native Inhabitants • William Marsden

... of conflict was not confined to one side of the Square now. Street after street took up the fight. The soldiers were attacking from every quarter. The sharp command to charge rang out more often, and the sudden growl of the hand-to-hand struggles was fiercer and longer and more continuous. Here and there was an ominous bending inward of a mass of defenders, ...

— Princess Maritza • Percy Brebner

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