pincer movement

noun

1
: a military attack by two coordinated forces that close in on an enemy position from different directions
2
: a combination of two forces acting against an opposing force

Examples of pincer movement in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Multiple columns of smoke can be seen rising into the sky as Russian troops subject the town to a pincer movement. — Scott Peterson, The Christian Science Monitor, 4 Feb. 2025 Ukrainian soldiers in Pokrovsk said that Russian forces switched tactics in recent weeks, attacking their flanks instead of going head-on to form a pincer movement around the city. — Samya Kullab, Los Angeles Times, 3 Feb. 2025 Allied airpower would provide the necessary cover to enable a southern-northern pincer movement that could collapse the Houthi hold on Yemen and eliminate the threat entirely. — Benjamin Weinthal, FOXNews.com, 17 July 2025 These Doom effects tend to build on each other in an almost exponential way, resulting in aggressive builds that can sandwich the enemy’s health bar from both sides to quickly squash them in a very satisfying pincer movement. — ArsTechnica, 13 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for pincer movement

Word History

First Known Use

1915, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of pincer movement was in 1915

Rhymes for pincer movement

See All Rhymes for pincer movement

Browse Nearby Words

pincerlike
pincer movement
pincette
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Cite this Entry

“Pincer movement.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pincer%20movement. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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