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Synonyms

raid

American  
[reyd] / reɪd /

noun

  1. a sudden assault or attack, as upon something to be seized or suppressed.

    a police raid on a gambling ring.

    Synonyms:
    seizure
  2. Military. a sudden attack on the enemy, as by air or by a small land force.

    Synonyms:
    inroad, invasion, incursion
  3. a vigorous, large-scale effort to lure away a competitor's employees, members, etc.

  4. Finance. a concerted attempt of speculators to force stock prices down.


verb (used with object)

raids, present (3rd person singular) raided, past participle, past raiding present participle
  1. to make a raid on.

  2. to steal from; loot.

    a worry that the investment fund is being raided.

  3. to entice away from another.

    Large companies are raiding key personnel from smaller companies.

  4. to indulge oneself by taking from, especially in order to eat.

    raiding the cookie jar.

verb (used without object)

raids, present (3rd person singular) raided, past participle, past raiding present participle
  1. to engage in a raid.

raid British  
/ reɪd /

noun

  1. a sudden surprise attack

    an air raid

  2. a surprise visit by police searching for criminals or illicit goods

    a fraud-squad raid

  3. See also bear raid dawn raid

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to make a raid against (a person, thing, etc)

  2. to sneak into (a place) in order to take something, steal, etc

    raiding the larder

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Etymology

Origin of raid

1375–1425; Middle English (north and Scots ) ra ( i ) de, Old English rād expedition, literally, a riding; doublet of road

Explanation

A raid is a military attack, especially a quick surprise attack. The word comes from the military but has spread out — police might raid a shady nightclub to find bad guys, or a babysitter might raid the refrigerator. When an army launches a raid, you can say they raid, or attack abruptly. This verb can also be used to mean "search" or "enter unexpectedly," as when police officers raid a suspect's home or summer campers' raid a neighboring cabin. The military meaning is the oldest, and the word comes from the Scottish rade, "a riding" or "a journey," from the Old English rad, which is also the root of road.

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Vocabulary lists containing raid

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“The Tanzanian Police Force operates under its own chain of command and makes its own decisions ... for RAID, Leigh Day, or any other organization to suggest otherwise is simply not true,” the company said.

From Reuters • Dec. 13, 2022

“It is very difficult; I can only fulfill around 25 percent of my needs,” Jean said in an interview with RAID.

From The Verge • Feb. 15, 2022

Dr Langlois was part of RAID, a French national counter-terrorist armed police unit that responded to various terrorist attacks across France.

From BBC • Jan. 17, 2022

AFP RAID: The AFP tell us they are interested in “certain things.”

From The Guardian • Jun. 4, 2019

“It’s very multidisciplinary,” says John Goodge, a geologist at the University of Minnesota Duluth and a project leader on US RAID.

From Nature • Oct. 27, 2015

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