tactical
adjective · noun
Simple meaning
Related to a plan for attaining a particular goal.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
taktihkuhlSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈtæktɪkəl
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adjective
Of or pertaining to tactic or tactics
Of or relating to tactics.
Of or relating to military operations that are smaller or more local than strategic ones.
Adroit, skilful or ingenious.
noun
A private war reenactment event involving mock battles or skirmishes.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate (estimated)
- Frequency
- Moderately Common
- Typical Use
- Neutral / general English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Of or pertaining to tactic or tactics
Used this way, tactical is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use tactical
- “They used a tactical approach to solve the complex problem.”
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
A plan for attaining a particular goal.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Intelligence that is required for the planning and conduct of tactical operations.
A move made to gain a tactical end.
A move made to gain a tactical end.
A warning after the initiation of a hostile act.
A shipboard system for collecting and displaying tactical data.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.