strafe
Americanverb (used with object)
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to attack (ground troops or installations) by airplanes with machine-gun fire.
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Slang. to reprimand viciously.
verb (used without object)
noun
verb
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to machine-gun (troops, etc) from the air
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slang to punish harshly
noun
Other Word Forms
- strafer noun
- unstrafed adjective
Etymology
Origin of strafe
First recorded in 1910–15; from German strafen “to punish”
Explanation
To strafe is to attack from above with bullets or bombs. During World War I, planes fitted with machine guns flew low so they could strafe targets below. Think of a quick-firing machine gun or rapid series of bombs to understand the military verb strafe. This technique made it possible to mount deadly attacks on the enemy, provided that planes could fly at very low altitudes. Technology improvements by World War II meant that pilots of these planes were better protected in cockpits. The word strafe comes from a German catchphrase used during World War I, Gott strafe England, "may God punish England."
Vocabulary lists containing strafe
Unbroken
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This Week In Culture: September 28–October 4, 2019
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Most Dangerous
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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.
One researcher has been hiring planes to strafe the sky over the Amazon rain forest to collect the air coming off the trees, and what she is finding is cause for alarm.
From Scientific American • Sep. 22, 2023
The storms dip over the warm subtropics “and create a conveyor belt of of moisture to strafe the West Coast of the U.S,” Maue said.
From Seattle Times • Jan. 4, 2023
He kept batters off-balance with a devilish mix of pitches, including a curveball that seemed to strafe third base before finding home.
From New York Times • Mar. 26, 2020
Team Alive’s greatest moment of jeopardy may have come early, as Jon Snow considered using Rhaegal to strafe a line of mounted White Walkers.
From Slate • Apr. 30, 2019
When he turned back to strafe it would be another matter.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
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.
