attacked

verb

past tense of attack
1
as in assaulted
to take sudden, violent action against our dog unexpectedly attacked the mailman, sinking his teeth into the startled man's leg

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in slammed
to criticize harshly and usually publicly the mayor and all his aides were attacked mercilessly in the press when the scandal erupted

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in tackled
to start work on energetically Courtney attacked the huge mess in her room with determination and enthusiasm

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 attacked Authorities said John had been a special needs student at the school and had attacked a classroom with special needs students. — Haven Daley, Arkansas Online, 17 Oct. 2026 On Friday, settlers attacked the village as residents, accompanied by peace activists, set out early for the harvest. — Sam Metz, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026 At least 10 vessels have been attacked in or near the strait since the weekend, with six hit Sunday and four Tuesday. — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 16 Oct. 2026 Last year’s olive harvest saw a surge of such incidents across the West Bank as settlers attacked Palestinians and prevented them from accessing their land. — Oren Liebermann, CNN Money, 16 Oct. 2026 Earlier this month, sea and aerial drones attacked two other commercial vessels in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone. — ABC News, 16 Oct. 2026 At a meeting earlier this year, top foreign ministry officials from several European countries were asked who among them still believed that the United States would come to their defense if they were attacked. — Ivo H. Daalder, Foreign Affairs, 16 Oct. 2026 Iran and its Houthi allies have also attacked refineries in the Middle East. — Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 9 Oct. 2026 The Indian captain opened the cockpit door after being attacked with an ax so that passengers could restrain the terrorist co-pilot. — Editorial Board, Washington Post, 9 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for attacked
  1. assaulted
  2. slammed
  3. tackled
  4. raided
  5. scolded
  6. approached
  7. stormed
  8. abused
Verb
  • The woman tried to intervene as her father was being assaulted, and Gonzalez also allegedly attacked her, authorities said.
    — Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The alum who asked not to be named alleged more than five years ago that she was assaulted by a male classmate – a student who had already been the subject of another Title IX complaint less than a year earlier.
    — Casey Tolan, CNN Money, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of assaulted
Verb
  • Shortly after, Wilcox slammed on the brakes, jumped out of his vehicle, took out a loaded semi-automatic handgun and fired three gunshots at the officer, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
    — Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Simon has weakened to a Category 2 storm, its eye remaining just offshore as its most powerful winds and rain slammed communities between the Sierra Madre and the ocean and were forecast to persist off the coast of Puerto Vallarta.
    — JAIMIE DING, Arkansas Online, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of slammed
Verb
  • Harris accepted, then asked to co-write the screenplay despite never having tackled a feature script.
    — Davide Abbatescianni, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Iamaleava missed the entire second half of the 17-15 victory over Oregon after he was tackled on a keeper late in the first half of play.
    — Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of tackled
Verb
  • In January, the FBI raided a Post reporter’s home, as part of an investigation into a government contractor accused of mishandling sensitive national security information.
    — Chad de Guzman, Time, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Authorities on Wednesday raided the headquarters of one of Turkey ’s few broadcasters not aligned with the government, and appointed a trustee manager to oversee the popular news channel as part of an investigation into alleged corruption.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of raided
Verb
  • District of Columbia Judge Ana Reyes angrily scolded government attorneys in a hearing to block the government from cutting down more trees at East Potomac Golf Course.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 12 Oct. 2026
  • Eventually, all charges were dropped days before trial after Perry was finally given the full, unredacted grand jury transcripts and scolded prosecutors for violating the inherent trust placed in the office.
    — Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of scolded
Verb
  • Even gambling, when approached responsibly, can be an enjoyable recreational activity.
    — Aneri Jambusaria, Fortune, 18 Oct. 2026
  • But Mana said those plans were still on the table when Griffin’s team approached him about buying Mana Wynwood about three years ago.
    — Catherine Odom, Miami Herald, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of approached
Verb
  • The flow of money from Qatar into Gaza has taken on new significance since October 7, 2023, when Hamas terrorists stormed southern Israel, murdered some 1,200 people, and took 251 more hostage.
    — Eric Cortellessa, Time, 18 Oct. 2026
  • They were moved to various locations as rioters stormed the Capitol, and ended up barricading themselves in the Rayburn House Office Building until order was restored and Krishnamoorthi could vote.
    — Marni Pyke, Chicago Tribune, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of stormed
Verb
  • Macedo wrote a letter to Steve Kawa, the chair of the authority’s board, ahead of the meeting saying that Choudri had misused taxpayer money and abused public trust.
    — Stephen Hobbs, Sacbee.com, 10 Oct. 2026
  • Krems said the nanny, Chun-May Lee, who allegedly abused the children, was quickly fired.
    — Austin Turner, CBS News, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of abused

Browse Nearby Words

attack dogs
attacked
attacker
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Cite this Entry

“Attacked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/attacked. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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