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Attack əˈtæk Place Series Terrorist Violent Police Extra

Word3 attack
WordType (noun)
Phonetic /əˈtæk/ /əˈtæk/
Example
  • five people were killed in the attacks that took place last night.
  • the recent series of deadly terrorist attacks on european cities
  • a violent attack upon a police officer
  • vicious attacks against pensioners
Sound Online sound. https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/media/english/us_pron/a/att/attac/attack__us_2.mp3
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Content

attack

(noun)/əˈtæk/ /əˈtæk/
  1. an act of using violence to try to hurt or kill somebody
    • Five people were killed in the attacks that took place last night.
    • the recent series of deadly terrorist attacks on European cities
    • a violent attack upon a police officer
    • vicious attacks against pensioners
    • A child is recovering in hospital after a serious attack by a stray dog.

    Extra Examples

    • He was subjected to a violent attack.
    • Two teenagers carried out a frenzied attack on a local shopkeeper.
    • Where did the attack happen?
    • an attack by an armed gang
    • an increase in knife attacks on police officers
  2. an act of trying to kill or injure the enemy in war, using weapons such as guns and bombs
    • a bomb/rocket/missile attack
    • Rebel forces launched an attack on civilian targets.
    • Commanders attempted to prevent an attack against the city.
    • The patrol came under attack from all sides.

    Extra Examples

    • Bombers pressed home their attack, causing severe damage to harbour installations.
    • Most of the population would stand little chance of surviving a nuclear attack.
    • The administration may launch a pre-emptive attack against terrorist bases.
    • The attack took place under cover of darkness.
    • The border towns have suffered a series of attacks.
    • The soldiers mounted an all-out attack on the town.
    • They came under sustained attack from the air.
    • an attack on enemy positions
  3. a sudden, short period of illness, usually severe
    • SEE ALSO heart attack
      https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/heart-attack
    • to suffer an asthma attack
    • an attack of fever
  4. a sudden period of feeling an emotion such as fear
    • a panic attack
    • an attack of nerves
    • He suffers from attacks of anxiety.
    • an attack of conscience (= a guilty feeling about something you have done or are planning to do)
    • an attack of the giggles
  5. strong criticism of somebody/something in speech or in writing
    • He found himself the victim of an unprovoked attack by the media.
    • She has laid herself wide open to attack.
    • It was seen as a personal attack on the president.
    • The school has come under attack for failing to encourage bright students.
    • Doctors have gone on the attack, accusing the government of incompetence.

    Extra Examples

    • The government's decision has provoked an attack from leaders of the health service.
    • The first line of attack is often name-calling.
  6. the players in a team whose job is to try to score goals or points
    • COMPARE defence
      https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/defence
    • Germany's attack has been weakened by the loss of some key players through injury.
  7. the actions that players take to try to score a goal or win the game
    • a sustained attack on the Arsenal goal
  8. an action that you take to try to stop or change something that you feel is bad
    • to launch an all-out attack on poverty/unemployment
  9. the action of something such as an insect, or a disease, that causes damage to something/somebody
    • The roof timbers were affected by rot and insect attack.

    Word Origin

    • early 17th cent.: from French attaque (noun), attaquer (verb), from Italian attacco ‘an attack’, attaccare ‘join battle’, based on an element of Germanic origin (see attach).
Copyright This card's content is collected from the following dictionaries: Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

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