offensives

noun

plural of offensive
as in attacks
the act or action of setting upon with force or violence the primary offensive by the ground forces will commence at dawn tomorrow

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 offensives Ukraine can conduct localized offensives but not enough to shift the broader battlefield balance, despite mounting Russian losses. — ABC News, 8 Oct. 2026 Only small offensives are possible Ukraine can conduct localized offensives but not enough to shift the broader battlefield balance, despite mounting Russian losses. — Samya Kullab, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2026 However, further Houthi offensives have met stiffer resistance from the recuperated forces of the Presidential Leadership Council, depriving the group of another quick victory. — Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 4 Oct. 2026 With alarm bells ringing over potential Russian offensives — both digital and kinetic — in the coming months, vulnerable European nations must figure out if, and how, to respond. — Rafi Schwartz, TheWeek, 28 Sep. 2026 However, Iran analysts are highly skeptical that Tehran will prove capable of launching any such large-scale ground offensives any time soon. — Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026 Countries are scrambling not to fall behind in AI — and French President Emmanuel Macron and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are leading a personal charm offensives to court tech CEOs. — Kai Nicol-Schwarz,priyanka Salve, CNBC, 4 July 2026 By targeting logistics hubs and resource stockpiles, Ukraine is attacking the systems that sustain Russian offensives. — Aidan Stretch, CBS News, 9 June 2026 The twin offensives are targeting Hamas and Hezbollah respectively, though critics argue that the operations are motivated at least in part by domestic politics — Israel is due to hold elections by October — and are amplifying troubling humanitarian situations in Gaza and Lebanon. — Prashant Rao, semafor.com, 29 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for offensives
  1. attacks
  2. raids
  3. assaults
  4. offenses
  5. onslaughts
  6. aggressions
  7. attempts
  8. strikes
Noun
  • That has included arson attacks on Jewish sites that Britain says were carried out by Iranian proxies.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The attacks came during the World Petroleum Congress in Riyadh.
    — Jim Edwards, Fortune, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of attacks
Noun
  • Raman called for replacing the police chief over the department’s handling of federal immigration raids, while Bass warned that changing leadership ahead of the 2028 Olympics could disrupt the department.
    — Barnini Chakraborty, The Washington Examiner, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Raman called for Police Chief Jim McDonnell’s ouster over his handling of federal immigration raids.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of raids
Noun
  • Schleinzer made a deliberate choice not to depict the assaults themselves, arguing that images carry a responsibility, particularly in a culture saturated with graphic representations of suffering.
    — Katherine Brodsky, Variety, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Misdemeanor assaults have increased 16% in transit, to 1,304 from 1,120.
    — Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of assaults
Noun
  • Donaldson’s wife, Eleanor Donaldson, 60, was found to have aided and abetted her husband’s offenses for witnessing the abuse and doing nothing to intervene.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 15 Oct. 2026
  • At least two other solicitor generals in Georgia, including in Fulton County, have similar programs allowing people facing minor offenses to donate to charitable causes as a form of community service.
    — Reed Williams, AJC.com, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of offenses
Noun
  • In fact, reported evidence suggests this software commitment (from a company making its revenue from hardware) has been crucial to Nvidia’s success in fending off onslaughts from other hardware vendors such as Intel.
    — Nisha Talagala, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Ukraine has been largely helpless in similar Russian onslaughts in recent weeks.
    — Tom Bowman, NPR, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of onslaughts
Noun
  • As quotas for immigration arrests increased that spring, he was asked to press felony charges for even minor aggressions against agents.
    — Emily Witt, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
  • The United States deploys about 28,500 troops in South Korea as deterrence against potential aggressions from North Korea.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of aggressions
Noun
  • Last weekend in Highland, Michigan, Rogers dismissed El-Sayed's attempts to whittle away at his GOP base of support.
    — Aaron Navarro, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Proposition 132 attempts to address these concerns by stiffening legal penalties.
    — Joshua Barocas, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of attempts
Noun
  • As recent conflicts have shown, air power is rarely effective without ground troops who can move in and seize territory after strikes.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Russians are largely shielded from the deadly horrors of the front lines, but Ukraine has sought to shatter the illusion that the consequences of war are far removed through drone strikes deep inside its territory.
    — Zahra Ullah, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of strikes

Browse Nearby Words

offensiveness
offensives
offer
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Cite this Entry

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

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