attrit

[ uh-trit ]
/ əˈtrɪt /

verb (used with object), at·trit·ted, at·trit·ting.

to wear down (an opposing military force) by numerical superiority in troops or firepower.

QUIZZES

HEED THE VOX POPULI, AND TAKE THIS WORD OF THE DAY QUIZ!

Test your memory on these verbal firecrackers from the week of June 29 to July 5!
Question 1 of 7
anchorite
a granular metamorphic rock.
a person who has retired to a solitary place for a life of religious seclusion.
a hobble or fetter for a horse or other animal.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of attrit

First recorded in 1750–60; back formation from attrition

Words nearby attrit

attrib., attribute, attribution, attribution theory, attributive, attrit, attrite, attrition, attu, attucks, attucks, crispus
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

British Dictionary definitions for attrit

attrit
/ (əˈtrɪt) /

verb -trits, -tritting or -tritted US slang (tr)

to wear down or dispose of gradually
to kill

Word Origin for attrit

C18: back formation from attrition
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