# tactic

Pronunciation: say "TAK-tik" /ˈtæktɪk/

## Noun

1. A maneuver or action calculated to achieve a particular end.
   - Simple: A planned action or trick used to get what you want.
   - _Delaying the vote was a tactic to let tempers cool before the decision._
   - _Her favorite negotiating tactic is silence._
2. In military use, a maneuver employed against an enemy.
   - Simple: A move made against an enemy in a battle.
   - _The feigned retreat was a tactic the cavalry had used for centuries._
   - _Night raids became the guerrillas' most effective tactic against the convoys._
3. In chess, a sequence of moves that limits the opponent's options and yields an immediate, concrete advantage, usually material.
   - Simple: In chess, a short series of moves that wins a piece or forces the other player into a bad spot.
   - _The whole game turned on a single tactic: a knight fork of king and rook._
   - _Strong players calculate every tactic on the board before choosing a quiet move._

## Adjective

4. In chemistry, describing a polymer whose repeat units are identical in configuration.
   - Simple: In chemistry, describing a plastic whose repeating parts are all arranged the same way.
   - _Tactic polypropylene packs into crystals far more readily than the random form._
   - _The catalyst was chosen because it yields a tactic chain rather than a jumbled one._

## Adjective

5. Having to do with tactics, particularly the art of maneuvering forces in warfare on land or at sea. *(dated)*
   - Simple: An old word for tactical, to do with the way battles are fought.
   - _Old military manuals praised the tactic value of holding high ground near a river._
   - _The admiral's tactic skill was praised even by the captains who disliked him._

## Origin

It was borrowed from New Latin tactica, which came from Ancient Greek taktikós ("fit for ordering"), from the verb tássō ("to order, to arrange").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/tactic (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).