pre-emptive attack
Frequency: 7.08.5 per million words
an attack launched to prevent an expected enemy attack
Categories:
Examples (10)
- A nation might launch a pre-emptive attack to neutralize an imminent threat.
- The general argued that a pre-emptive attack was the only way to ensure national security.
- Some consider a pre-emptive attack morally justifiable in extreme circumstances.
- The decision to authorize a pre-emptive attack is always fraught with risk.
- Intelligence suggested the enemy was preparing for an assault, prompting discussions about a pre-emptive attack.
- Historically, pre-emptive attacks have often led to wider conflicts.
- The government denied that its actions constituted a pre-emptive attack.
- Could a cyber pre-emptive attack prevent a physical war?
- The strategy involved a swift pre-emptive attack to cripple their defenses.
- International law often debates the legality of a pre-emptive attack.