Verb: assail u'seyl
- Use aggressive force against
"Nightmares assailed him regularly";
- assault, set on, attack
- Launch assault on; begin hostilities or start warfare with
"Serbian forces assailed Bosnian towns all week";
- attack
- Aggressively challenge in speech or writing
"The editors of the left-leaning paper assailed the new House Speaker";
- attack, round, lash out, assault
Derived forms: assailed, assails, assailing
Type of: act, criticise [Brit], criticize, damn [informal], fight, knock [informal], move, pick apart, struggle
Antonym: defend
Encyclopedia: Assail