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
-
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:
El Salvador has deployed special forces to Haiti after four of its soldiers serving in a UN-backed force in the Caribbean nation went missing following a gang ambush, officials said.
From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026
The ambush occurred in Croix-des-Bouquets, an area controlled by armed groups.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
The ancient landscape surrounding the fossil site contained wetlands and marshes that could have provided suitable habitat for an enormous ambush predator.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026
Mr. Sullivan set up what some top Israeli defense officials saw as an ambush by bringing nearly the entire top U.S. team on the line to weigh in against a strike.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
The cricket chirped And jumped into The gray ambush of grass.
From "Neighborhood Odes" by Gary Soto
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
Over the next month they often teamed up on ambushes.
From "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien
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
He ambushed a first-pitch sinker and drove it into the left-field gap for a go-ahead double.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 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
Braddock’s column was ambushed by French and Native American forces at the Battle of the Monongahela.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
April was ambushed by a quick pang of sympathy, remembering how it was—missing someone and having to face a new classroom.
From "The Egypt Game" by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
That’s still better than ambushing workers all at once with mass layoffs, some executives say.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
The turtles mainly hunt by hiding under water and ambushing their prey, he said.
From BBC ● Jun. 9, 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
Then Betts came to the plate and continued his recent — and long-awaited — turnaround offensively, ambushing a first-pitch slider for his first home run since July 5.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2025
By the time of the great Inca rebellion of 1536, the Incas had learned how best to defend themselves against cavalry, by ambushing and annihilating Spanish horsemen in narrow passes.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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