attacking

verb

present participle of attack
1
as in assaulting
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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2
as in slamming
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 tackling
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 attacking Generally, these hunters do not start attacking cells unless there is a reason to do so, such as inflammation, a key marker of infection. — Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Aug. 2026 For example, Way of the Sword rewards defensive play in the form of Issen, powerful counterattacks that are triggered by attacking before an enemy strikes. — Zackery Cuevas, PC Magazine, 31 Aug. 2026 Eight in 10 Americans believe attacking Iran increased the cost of gas and groceries, and a majority disapprove of the war in Iran according to a new UMass Amherst Poll. — Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA Today, 31 Aug. 2026 To be sure, Iran is still attacking ships, but that hasn’t been enough to stop traffic. — Jason Ma, Fortune, 30 Aug. 2026 Tehran is already attacking commercial shipping, contesting passage through Hormuz and relying on the Houthis to keep pressure on maritime traffic in the Red Sea. — Hamidreza Azizi, Time, 29 Aug. 2026 On the last day of February, the US and Israel launched a war on Iran, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and attacking targets across the country. — Mick Krever, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026 In August 2025, he was charged with four felonies after allegedly attacking police officers while walking naked through the streets of Los Angeles. — Mitchell Peters, Billboard, 29 Aug. 2026 That deal fell apart within weeks after Iran started attacking ships. — ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for attacking
  1. assaulting
  2. slamming
  3. tackling
  4. raiding
  5. scolding
  6. approaching
  7. storming
  8. abusing
Verb
  • Dad is an abusive alcoholic, prone to berating and even assaulting his daughter in front of guests, of which Vangelio is currently the only one.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 30 Aug. 2026
  • The man is being charged with dangerous operation of a vehicle, obstructing a peace officer and assaulting a peace officer with a weapon, according to Windsor Police.
    — Natalie Davies, Freep.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of assaulting
Verb
  • Meanwhile, Talarico is barnstorming the state, slamming Republicans mostly on kitchen table issues like stubborn inflation and the price of gas that has skyrocketed due to Trump’s war with Iran.
    — Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 28 Aug. 2026
  • There was little time for anyone to flee as flash floods decimated villages, slamming into houses, roads, bridges and power plants.
    — Megan De Mar, CBS News, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of slamming
Verb
  • But beyond tackling dryness and dehydration, more active body lotions have ingredients—like peptides and retinol—that target specific concerns associated with aging skin.
    — Jenny Berg, Vogue, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Similar efforts to make quantum hardware more resilient include quantum chips designed to verify their own hardware, showing how reliability is becoming a problem that researchers are tackling at several levels.
    — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of tackling
Verb
  • College sports’ current arms race of money, along with unrestricted transfers, is threatening to shut out rising challengers like UConn football, with rich teams now dangling lucrative offers and raiding talent like never before.
    — U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Hartford Courant, 24 Aug. 2026
  • Check it out… ‘Ruthless Podcast’ dives into Swalwell’s Fang Fang scandal and the FBI raiding his home.
    — , FOXNews.com, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of raiding
Verb
  • Historically, the United States has sent mixed messages to Europeans, encouraging them to step up but then scolding them for seeking autonomy.
    — JENNIFER KAVANAGH, Foreign Affairs, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Rather than scolding parents about screens, society could do more to support families in ways that obviate the need for screen time.
    — Olga Khazan, The Atlantic, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of scolding
Verb
  • Edouard is approaching the same region impacted by Tropical Storm Arthur in June and Tropical Storm Bertha in July.
    — Brandi D. Addison, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2026
  • This coexistence of the everyday and the extraordinary suggested to me a cinematic way of approaching death – not as a spectacular intrusion, but as a presence that slowly infiltrates daily life.
    — Anna Marie de la Fuente, Variety, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of approaching
Verb
  • Such mutinous talk only heightened conservative Justices’ sense that the barbarians were storming the gate.
    — Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Davis Polk's client note describes the package as continuing bombardment rather than storming the beaches, built from existing authorities.
    — Güney Yıldız, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of storming
Verb
  • Communities from Lansing, Michigan, to Pflugerville, Texas, are ending their relationship with Flock, largely over concerns regarding out-of-control surveillance, unwanted data sharing, high expenses, and reports of police abusing the tool.
    — Cyrus Farivar, ArsTechnica, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Countless cops, meanwhile, are abusing the cameras to stalk women.
    — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of abusing

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attackers
attacking
attacks
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Cite this Entry

“Attacking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/attacking. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

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