TACTICS

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does tactics mean? 

• TACTICS (noun)
  The noun TACTICS has 2 senses:

1. the branch of military science dealing with detailed maneuvers to achieve objectives set by strategy

2. a plan for attaining a particular goal

  Familiarity information: TACTICS used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• TACTICS (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The branch of military science dealing with detailed maneuvers to achieve objectives set by strategy

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Hypernyms ("tactics" is a kind of...):

military science (the discipline dealing with the principles of warfare)

Domain category:

armed forces; armed services; military; military machine; war machine (the military forces of a nation)

Derivation:

tactical (of or pertaining to tactic or tactics)

tactician (a person who is skilled at planning tactics)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A plan for attaining a particular goal

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

maneuver; manoeuvre; tactic; tactics

Hypernyms ("tactics" is a kind of...):

plan of action (a plan for actively doing something)

Derivation:

tactical (of or pertaining to tactic or tactics)

tactician (a person who is skilled at planning tactics)

 Context examples 

For now, set strategy and decide on your tactics to realize your goal.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

The nature of his tactics suggested his identity to me, and this physical peculiarity—he was badly bitten in a saloon-fight at Adelaide in ’89—confirmed my suspicion.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

What of his bushwhacking and waylaying tactics, the young dogs were afraid to run by themselves.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

He spoke with fire and conviction, mincing no words in his attack upon the slaves and their morality and tactics and frankly alluding to his hearers as the slaves in question.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

So now we had a reversal of tactics, for it was Jim who went in to hit with all the vigour of his young strength and unimpaired energy, while it was the savage Berks who was paying his debt to Nature for the many injuries which he had done her.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Senior author Dr Despoina Mavridou, from the Department of Life Sciences at Imperial, said: This behavior is strongly reminiscent of the human 'divide and conquer' strategy, famously delineated by Niccolò Machiavelli in his book The Art of War and shows that bacteria are capable of very elaborate warfare tactics.

(Bacteria Can 'Divide and Conquer' to Vanquish Their Enemies, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

At work, if you have been working under a tough boss, that person may now either quit or will downplay the domineering tactics.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

It was evident that Berks meant to finish the battle off-hand, whilst Jim, with two of the most experienced men in England to advise him, was quite aware that his correct tactics were to allow the ruffian to expend his strength and wind in vain.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

This suggests tactics of an authority figure who has not exercised power and influence fairly will find that the usual formulas and domineering behavior won’t work as well in the future, perhaps to the puzzlement of this highly placed individual.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

He held his guard somewhat lower to screen this vulnerable point, and he danced round his opponent with a lightness which showed that his wind had not been impaired by the body-blows, whilst the smith still adopted the impassive tactics with which he had commenced.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)