types:
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ground attack
an attack by ground troops
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charge
an impetuous rush toward someone or something
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banzai attack, banzai charge
a mass attack of troops without concern for casualties; originated by Japanese who accompanied it with yells of `banzai'
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diversion, diversionary attack
an attack calculated to draw enemy defense away from the point of the principal attack
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incursion, penetration
an attack that penetrates into enemy territory
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blitz, blitzkrieg
a swift and violent military offensive with intensive aerial bombardment
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strike
an attack that is intended to seize or inflict damage on or destroy an objective
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counterattack, countermove
an attack by a defending force against an attacking enemy force in order to regain lost ground or cut off enemy advance units etc.
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bombardment, bombing
an attack by dropping bombs
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fire, firing
the act of firing weapons or artillery at an enemy
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strafe
an attack of machine-gun fire or cannon fire from a low flying airplane
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coup de main, surprise attack
an attack without warning
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diversionary landing
an amphibious diversionary attack
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countercharge
a retaliatory charge
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interpenetration
the action of penetrating between or among
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breakthrough
a penetration of a barrier such as an enemy's defense
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invasion
the act of invading; the act of an army that invades for conquest or plunder
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infiltration
a process in which individuals (or small groups) penetrate an area (especially the military penetration of enemy positions without detection)
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foray, maraud, raid
a sudden short attack
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first strike
the initial use of nuclear weapons to attack a country that also has nuclear weapons; considered feasible only when the attacker can destroy the other country's ability to retaliate
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surgical strike
an attack (usually without prior warning) intended to deal only with a specific target
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preventive attack, preventive strike
a strike that is carried out in order to deter expected aggression by hostile forces
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bombing run
that part of the flight that begins with the approach to the target; includes target acquisition and ends with the release of the bombs
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area bombing, carpet bombing, saturation bombing
an extensive and systematic bombing intended to devastate a large target
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antiaircraft fire
firing at enemy aircraft
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barrage, barrage fire, battery, bombardment, shelling
the heavy fire of artillery to saturate an area rather than hit a specific target
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broadside
the simultaneous firing of all the armament on one side of a warship
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burst, fusillade, salvo, volley
rapid simultaneous discharge of firearms
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call fire
fire delivered on a specific target in response to a request from the supported unit
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cover, covering fire
fire that makes it difficult for the enemy to fire on your own individuals or formations
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concentrated fire, massed fire
fire from two or more weapons directed at a single target or area (as fire by batteries of two or more warships)
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counterfire
fire intended to neutralize or destroy enemy weapons
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counterpreparation fire
intensive prearranged fire delivered when the immanence of enemy attack is discovered
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crossfire
fire from two or more points so that the lines of fire cross
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destruction fire
fire delivered for the sole purpose of destroying material objects
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direct fire
fire delivered on a target that is visible to the person aiming it
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distributed fire
fire dispersed so as to engage effectively an area target
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fratricide, friendly fire
fire that injures or kills an ally
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hostile fire
fire that injures or kills an enemy
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grazing fire
fire approximately parallel to the ground; the center of the cone of fire does rise above 1 meter from the ground
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harassing fire
fire designed to disturb the rest of enemy troops and to curtail movement and to lower enemy morale
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indirect fire
fire delivered on a target that is not itself used as the point of aim for the weapons
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interdiction fire
fire directed to an area to prevent the enemy from using that area
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neutralization fire
fire that is delivered in order to render the target ineffective or unusable
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observed fire
fire for which the point of impact (the burst) can be seen by an observer; fire can be adjusted on the basis of the observations
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preparation fire
fire delivered on a target in preparation for an assault
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radar fire
gunfire aimed a target that is being tracked by radar
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registration fire
fire delivered to obtain accurate data for subsequent effective engagement of targets
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scheduled fire
prearranged fire delivered at a predetermined time
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searching fire
fire distributed in depth by successive changes in the elevation of the gun
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supporting fire
fire delivered by supporting units to protect or assist a unit in combat
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suppressive fire
fire on or about a weapon system to degrade its performance below what is needed to fulfill its mission objectives
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unobserved fire
fire for which the point of impact (the bursts) cannot be observed
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artillery fire, cannon fire
fire delivered by artillery
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riposte
(fencing) a counterattack made immediately after successfully parrying the opponents lunge
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terrorist attack
a surprise attack involving the deliberate use of violence against civilians in the hope of attaining political or religious aims
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ambuscade, ambush, lying in wait, trap
the act of concealing yourself and lying in wait to attack by surprise
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pre-emptive strike
a surprise attack that is launched in order to prevent the enemy from doing it to you