To attack means to use force or aggression against someone or something. A lion might attack a zebra in the wild, or a chess player might attack their opponent's king with a bold series of moves. In soccer, the attacking team pushes forward trying to score while the defending team tries to stop them.

An attack can be physical, like when someone shoves a smaller person, or it can be verbal, like when someone attacks another person's ideas with harsh criticism. Countries at war launch attacks on each other's forces. Computer hackers launch cyberattacks to break into protected systems.

The word also means to tackle a problem or task with energy and determination. A student might attack a difficult homework assignment by focusing intensely and working through each problem systematically. A team might attack the second half of a game with renewed effort after falling behind.

An attacker is someone or something that attacks. When someone is under attack, they're being targeted or assaulted. In everyday conversation, people use the word broadly: “I'm going to attack this messy garage today” just means tackling it with serious effort, not actually fighting it.

The key element in all these uses is aggressive, forceful action directed at a target, whether that target is an opponent, a problem, or a goal.