assail
verb (used with object)
to attack vigorously or violently; assault.
had assailed
-
past perfectof assail.past perfect
Used to express a completed action that took place before another specific past action occurred.
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.
Fedorov had assailed Syrskiy for dragging his feet on steps to modernize Ukraine’s military.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
In the 2010s, Vice raised piles of money from traditional media companies, which it had assailed for growing complacent.
From New York Times ● May 15, 2023
One defender who could keep the quarterback from further silencing the critics who had assailed his inconsistency and maddening tendency to attempt — and fail — to hurdle defenders.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 20, 2021
It was Nov. 19, 1964, and Hoover the previous day had assailed King at a news conference as “the most notorious liar in the country.”
From Washington Post ● Dec. 13, 2017
It may, however, simply have been another bout of deep blue melancholia, the kind that had assailed him off and on for years.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
