tactician
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of tactician
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How does tactician compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A tactician is someone good at planning tactics: the specific means of accomplishing goals. A strategy is an overall plan for accomplishing something. Tactics are the steps taken to carry out the strategy. If someone is skilled at coming up with tactics, they are a tactician. In a political campaign, a tactician helps with speeches and ads. In football, a tactician draws up plays. In war, a tactician figures out specific ways of carrying out the plans of the generals. A tactician knows how to get things done.
Vocabulary lists containing tactician
"The Iliad" by Homer, Book 2
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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.
For the first time in a decade, the bald man on the touchline wasn’t Pep Guardiola, the Catalan tactician who had molded City into a juggernaut.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
His interest in Murashige, meanwhile, a real-life tactician fictionalized here as an under-the-gun leader presented with myriad problems, poses the question: Did Kurosawa make a film about directing films?
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
Friends, associates and former colleagues and bosses describe Michael as a sharp-elbowed negotiator and a tactician who can turn a mess into a lucrative payday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 13, 2026
Hardie has a reputation as a high-grade tactician and shot maker, while McMillan and Lammie are credited with reinventing the role of a sweeper.
From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2026
Colonel Cathcart was indefatigable that way, an industrious, intense, dedicated military tactician who calculated day and night in the service of himself.
From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller
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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.