attack:1

verb
at*tack \ ə-ˈtak \
circa 1576{ds|t|1||}
  • to set upon or work against forcefully
  • to assail with unfriendly or bitter words
  • to begin to affect or to act on injuriously

attack:2

noun
attack \
1655{ds||1||}
  • the act of attacking with physical force or unfriendly words : assault
  • a belligerent or antagonistic action
  • a fit of sickness; especially : an active episode of a chronic or recurrent disease

attack:3

adjective
attack \
1686{ds||1||}
  • designed, planned, or used for carrying out a military attack
  • expressing or involving aggressively negative and harsh criticism of someone (such as a political opponent)

attack dog

noun
attack dog \
1939{ds||1||}
  • a dog trained to attack on command or on sight
  • a person noted for harsh, personal, and usually public verbal attacks against others —usually hyphenated when used before another noun

angle of attack

noun phrase
angle of attack \
1901
  • the acute angle between the direction of the relative wind and the chord of an airfoil

anxiety attack

noun
anxiety attack \
1911
  • a sudden feeling or episode of anxiety; specifically : an episode of mild to severe worry, distress, or fear that may last for hours or days, is typically preceded by a period of gradually increasing levels of fear and worry (such as that associated with a perceived stressor or threat), and that has symptoms (such as increased heart rate and shortness of breath) similar to but often less intense than those associated with a panic attack

banzai attack

noun
banzai attack \
1944
  • a mass attack by Japanese soldiers in World War II; also : an all-out usually desperate attack

brain attack

noun
brain attack \
1990
  • stroke

heart attack

noun
heart attack \
1836
  • an acute episode of coronary heart disease marked by the death or damage of heart muscle due to insufficient blood supply to the heart usually as a result of a coronary artery becoming blocked by a blood clot formed in response to a ruptured or torn fatty arterial deposit —called also myocardial infarction

on the attack

phrase
on the attack \
  • making an attack —often used in the phrase go on the attack with the meaning "to begin attacking"
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