attaquer

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian attaccare. Doublet of attacher.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /a.ta.ke/
  • Audio(file)

Verb

attaquer (transitive)

  1. to attack
    Synonym: assaillir
    La Russie a attaqué l’Ukraine avec des missiles.
    Russia attacked Ukraine with missiles.
    Ce livre attaque la position de Marx.
    This book attacks Marx's position.
  2. to diminish; to spoil; to erode
    Synonyms: ronger, détériorer
    La rouille attaque le fer.
    Rust erodes iron.
    • 1952, Frantz Fanon, “Introduction”, in Peau noire, masques blancs [Black Skin, White Masks], Paris, France: Éditions du Seuil, page 9:
      Mais le fait, pour moi, de me sentir étranger au monde du schizophrène ou à celui de l’impuissant sexuel n’attaque en rien leur réalité.
      But the fact that I feel a stranger in the world of the schizophrenic, or the world of a sexually impotent man, in no way diminishes their realness.
  3. to begin; to undertake (an enterprise, an endeavor, a task)
    Synonyms: entreprendre, commencer
    Je vais attaquer mes devoirs.
    I'm going to start doing my homework.
  4. (sailing) to approach (a shore)

Conjugation
Conjugation of attaquer (see also Appendix:French verbs)
infinitive simple attaquer
compound avoir + past participle
present participle or gerund1 simple attaquant
/a.ta.kɑ̃/
compound ayant + past participle
past participle attaqué
/a.ta.ke/
singular plural
first second third first second third
indicative je (j’) tu il, elle, on nous vous ils, elles
(simple
tenses)		 present attaque
/a.tak/		 attaques
/a.tak/		 attaque
/a.tak/		 attaquons
/a.ta.kɔ̃/		 attaquez
/a.ta.ke/		 attaquent
/a.tak/
imperfect attaquais
/a.ta.kɛ/		 attaquais
/a.ta.kɛ/		 attaquait
/a.ta.kɛ/		 attaquions
/a.ta.kjɔ̃/		 attaquiez
/a.ta.kje/		 attaquaient
/a.ta.kɛ/
past historic2 attaquai
/a.ta.ke/		 attaquas
/a.ta.ka/		 attaqua
/a.ta.ka/		 attaquâmes
/a.ta.kam/		 attaquâtes
/a.ta.kat/		 attaquèrent
/a.ta.kɛʁ/
future attaquerai
/a.ta.kʁe/		 attaqueras
/a.ta.kʁa/		 attaquera
/a.ta.kʁa/		 attaquerons
/a.ta.kʁɔ̃/		 attaquerez
/a.ta.kʁe/		 attaqueront
/a.ta.kʁɔ̃/
conditional attaquerais
/a.ta.kʁɛ/		 attaquerais
/a.ta.kʁɛ/		 attaquerait
/a.ta.kʁɛ/		 attaquerions
/a.ta.kə.ʁjɔ̃/		 attaqueriez
/a.ta.kə.ʁje/		 attaqueraient
/a.ta.kʁɛ/
(compound
tenses)		 present perfect present indicative of avoir + past participle
pluperfect imperfect indicative of avoir + past participle
past anterior2 past historic of avoir + past participle
future perfect future of avoir + past participle
conditional perfect conditional of avoir + past participle
subjunctive que je (j’) que tu qu’il, qu’elle que nous que vous qu’ils, qu’elles
(simple
tenses)		 present attaque
/a.tak/		 attaques
/a.tak/		 attaque
/a.tak/		 attaquions
/a.ta.kjɔ̃/		 attaquiez
/a.ta.kje/		 attaquent
/a.tak/
imperfect2 attaquasse
/a.ta.kas/		 attaquasses
/a.ta.kas/		 attaquât
/a.ta.ka/		 attaquassions
/a.ta.ka.sjɔ̃/		 attaquassiez
/a.ta.ka.sje/		 attaquassent
/a.ta.kas/
(compound
tenses)		 past present subjunctive of avoir + past participle
pluperfect2 imperfect subjunctive of avoir + past participle
imperative – tu – nous vous –
simple — attaque
/a.tak/		 — attaquons
/a.ta.kɔ̃/		 attaquez
/a.ta.ke/		 —
compound — simple imperative of avoir + past participle — simple imperative of avoir + past participle simple imperative of avoir + past participle —
1 The French gerund is usable only with the preposition en.
2 In less formal writing or speech, these tenses may be found to have been replaced in the following way:
  • past historic → present perfect
  • past anterior → pluperfect
  • imperfect subjunctive → present subjunctive
  • pluperfect subjunctive → past subjunctive

(Christopher Kendris [1995], Master the Basics: French, pp. 77, 78, 79, 81).

Descendants
  • → German: attackieren
  • → Romanian: ataca

Further reading
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