ambush
Americannoun
-
ambushes
plural
-
an act or instance of lying concealed so as to attack by surprise.
The highwaymen waited in ambush near the road.
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an act or instance of attacking unexpectedly from a concealed position.
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the concealed position itself.
They fired from ambush.
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those who attack suddenly and unexpectedly from a concealed position.
verb (used with object)
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ambushes,
present (3rd person singular)
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ambushed,
past participle, past
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ambushing
present participle
noun
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the act of waiting in a concealed position in order to launch a surprise attack
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a surprise attack from such a position
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the concealed position from which such an attack is launched
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the person or persons waiting to launch such an attack
verb
-
to lie in wait (for)
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(tr) to attack suddenly from a concealed position
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
ambushsimple
-
ambushessimple
-
have ambushedperfect
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has ambushedperfect
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am ambushingprogressive
-
are ambushingprogressive
-
is ambushingprogressive
-
have been ambushingperfect progressive
-
has been ambushingperfect progressive
Past
-
ambushedsimple
-
had ambushedperfect
-
was ambushingprogressive
-
were ambushingprogressive
-
had been ambushingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ambush
1250–1300; (v.) Middle English enbuss ( h ) en < Middle French embuschier to place men in ambush, literally, to set in the woods, equivalent to em- im- 1 + busch- (< Vulgar Latin *busca wood, forest < Germanic *busk- heavy stick) + -ier infinitive suffix; (noun) earlier enbusshe < Middle French embusche, derivative of the v.
Explanation
An ambush is a sneak attack. To ambush your enemy, hide and wait for him to come near and then pounce on him. In war or in backyards, an ambush is a great way to surprise someone. Ambush comes from a Latin word meaning “to place in a wood,” and hiding in the woods behind a tree is a classic starting point for an ambush. The actual attack is called an ambush, but ambush is also a verb, so you can ambush your mom by dropping water balloons on her head from a tree. Please don’t tell her where you got that idea.
Vocabulary lists containing ambush
Animal Farm
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"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" by Jeff Kinney
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"In the Spotlight," Vocabulary from the informational text
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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.
See Examples For:
“I’m not going to ambush those guys, and I’m not going to ambush Glas,” Roberts said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2026
But since the rings select their bearers by asking whether they’re afraid during an ambush designed to create dread, the test favors those for whom life never presents anything to fear.
From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2026
Its fantastical elements, from the ambush on Troy led by Matt Damon’s Odysseus to a giant cyclops that gobbles his men in a cave, were created primarily with physical effects for a more visceral impact.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
It is known as ambush marketing - and Fifa has been battling it since 1994.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026
But the Captains of the West were well warned by their scouts, skilled men from Henneth Annûn led by Mablung; and so the ambush was itself trapped.
From "The Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien
The filmmakers take their time revealing what long-ago crimes have so incensed Okuzaki as he more or less ambushes old comrades and superiors in their homes, confronting them with his accusations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
AFP spoke to his former business partner, ex-major Omar Rodriguez, who said that after a few desert ambushes last year, Quijano "paused" the operation.
From Barron's ● Dec. 21, 2025
Yet so much can derail them: fractured supply chains, staff blowups, quirks of locations and traffic, social media ambushes, even the unexpected, like COVID.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2025
"He was very good at setting up ambushes," one of Makenga's fellow RPF fighters told the Rift Valley Institute non-profit research organisation.
From BBC ● Feb. 9, 2025
Tyler ambushes me in between third and fourth period.
From "A Good Kind of Trouble" by Lisa Moore Ramée
A U.N.-backed force is trying to rescue four Salvadoran military personnel after gangs ambushed their armored vehicle in Haiti.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026
Think of it as a tax “prenup” with Uncle Sam that you settle up on your terms so the surviving spouse isn’t ambushed by higher rates down the road.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026
It was a safe haven from the Germans, who feared being ambushed by the Resistance.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
Then Rushing again ambushed the first pitch — a knuckle curve on the inside edge — and drove it off the right-field wall.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 7, 2026
These thoughts ambushed my mind, and I couldn’t fight the cloud of sadness that descended over me.
From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad
That’s still better than ambushing workers all at once with mass layoffs, some executives say.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
We’ve all seen the appalling videos of masked agents ambushing and abducting these migrants in the halls of New York’s immigration court as they’re leaving a hearing.
From Slate ● Mar. 27, 2026
After ambushing Guevara's guerrilla group Gen Prado was made a national hero for having defended the Bolivian military regime.
From BBC ● May 7, 2023
They also accused the troopers of essentially ambushing him even though they had been notified by dispatchers that his daughter had fled the home and was not in danger.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 13, 2023
He pulled pranks like putting ketchup on people’s faces while they slept, or ambushing them with water balloons when they’d just woken up.
From "The 57 Bus" by Dashka Slater
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
