tactical
Americanadjective
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of or relating to tactics, especially the placement of military or naval forces in battle or at the front line of a battle.
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characterized by skillful tactics or adroit maneuvering or procedure, especially of military or naval forces.
tactical movements.
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(of a weapon) short range, as battlefield missiles.
A tactical nuclear weapon would still present significant risks to battlefield troops on both sides of the conflict.
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of or relating to a maneuver or plan of action designed as an expedient toward gaining a desired end or temporary advantage.
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expedient; calculated.
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prudent; politic.
adjective
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of, relating to, or employing tactics
a tactical error
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(of weapons, attacks, etc) used in or supporting limited military operations
a tactical missile
tactical bombing
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skilful or diplomatic
a tactical manoeuvre
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of tactical
Explanation
A tactical move on the military's part is one that is carefully planned and often small in scale, but important in getting control of an area. Tactical comes from the Greek taktike techne meaning "art of arrangement." When something is tactical, it is artfully arranged, or planned. This most often refers to military or naval operations, but it doesn't have to. When someone does something with a goal that is beyond the immediate result of his action, that can be seen as a tactical move. For example, renovating your kitchen might be a tactical move if you're planning to eventually sell your house and want to increase its property value.
Vocabulary lists containing tactical
Ender's Game
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"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 7
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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.
At Ulm in the early 1990s, Rangnick was laying the groundwork for a tactical revolution in German football as one of the first managers to introduce zonal marking.
From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026
“While I’m fully on board with a couple of hikes, I have a beef with pricing exceeding just that: two tactical hikes,” he noted.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 9, 2026
"The way of playing, the systems. The game today is much more tactical and physical than before. Before, you found more spaces."
From BBC • Jun. 7, 2026
“Compressing the sensor-to-shooter cycle is the defining trend of this war at the tactical level,” said Franz-Stefan Gady, a military analyst and founder of defense advisory firm Gady Consulting.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 5, 2026
He lived in the details and worked his magic in the context of the moment, mobilizing those forces on the ground more adroitly and with a more deft tactical proficiency than anyone else.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
