Tet offensive

American  

noun

1. an offensive by Vietcong and North Vietnamese forces against South Vietnamese and U.S. positions in South Vietnam, beginning on Jan. 31, 1968, the start of Tet.

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Tet offensive Cultural  

1. A series of major attacks by communist forces in the Vietnam War. Early in 1968, Vietnamese communist troops seized and briefly held some major cities at the time of the lunar new year, or Tet. The Tet offensive, a turning point in the war, damaged the hopes of United States officials that the combined forces of the United States and South Vietnam could win.

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Example Sentences

In the 1968 Tet Offensive, U.S. forces crushed the Viet Cong, dealing a near-fatal blow to the communist insurgency.

From The Wall Street Journal

In early 1968, he fought during the Tet offensive.

From New York Times

Eight years later, the North Vietnamese Army and the communist Vietcong forces launched the Tet Offensive, attacking more than 100 cities, with Saigon as the centerpiece.

From New York Times

The Tet Offensive of 1968 effectively destroyed the Viet Cong.

From Salon

However, the Tet Offensive was a massive political success for the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong, even though militarily speaking it was a disaster.

From Salon