ambush
Contents
EnglishEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Old French verb enbuscier, anbuchier (whence the Middle French noun embusche), from Old French en- + Vulgar Latin boscus, bosca, boscum (“wood”), from Frankish *boscu, *busk (“bush”), from Proto-Germanic *busk- (“bush, heavy stick”). Compare ambuscade. The change to am- from earlier forms in en- is unexplained. More at bush.
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
ambush (plural ambushes)
- The act of concealing oneself and lying in wait to attack by surprise.
- An attack launched from a concealed position.
- Milton
- Heaven, whose high walls fear no assault or siege / Or ambush from the deep.
- Milton
- The troops posted in a concealed place, for attacking by surprise; those who lie in wait.
- Bible, Josh. viii. 19
- The ambush arose quickly out of their place.
- Bible, Josh. viii. 19
Derived termsEdit
Terms derived from ambush
TranslationsEdit
a disposition or arrangement of troops for attacking an enemy unexpectedly from a concealed station
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a concealed station
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
Translations to be checked
VerbEdit
ambush (third-person singular simple present ambushes, present participle ambushing, simple past and past participle ambushed)
- (transitive) To station in ambush with a view to surprise an enemy.
- Dryden
- By ambushed men behind their temple laid / We have the king of Mexico betrayed.
- Dryden
- (transitive) To attack by ambush; to waylay.
TranslationsEdit
to station in ambush with a view to surprise an enemy
to attack by ambush; to waylay
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