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The definition of a raid is a surprise attack or surprise visit, especially when done by the military during war or by police to arrest suspects.

(noun)

An example of a raid is when an army launches a surprise attack.
An example of a raid is when police show up unannounced to a suspected drug den to arrest the drug dealers.

To raid is to take something quickly and stealthily or to launch a surprise attack or surprise visit.

(verb)

An example of to raid is when you sneak down and take all the cookies from the cookie jar.
An example of to raid is when the military drops a bomb in a surprise attack.

See raid in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun

1. a sudden, hostile attack, esp. by troops, military aircraft, etc., or by armed, usually mounted, bandits intent on looting
2. any act or instance of entering to remove or capture something: a midnight raid on a refrigerator
any sudden invasion of a place, as by police, for discovering and dealing with violations of the law
☆ an attempt, as by a business concern, to lure employees from a competitor
a deliberate attempt by one or more speculators to cause a quick, unexpected fall in stock market prices

Origin: North Eng var. of road, preserving etym. sense, “a riding”: used orig. of an incursion along the border

transitive verb, intransitive verb

to make a raid or raids (on)

Related Forms:

raider noun

See raid in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun

A surprise attack by a small armed force.
A sudden forcible entry into a place by police: a raid on a gambling den.
An entrance into another's territory for the purpose of seizing goods or valuables.
A predatory operation mounted against a competitor, especially an attempt to lure away the personnel or membership of a competing organization.
An attempt to seize control of a company, as by acquiring a majority of its stock.
An attempt by speculators to drive stock prices down by coordinated selling.

verb raid·ed, raid·ing, raids

verb, transitive

To make a raid on.

verb, intransitive

To conduct a raid or participate in one.

Origin:

Origin: Scots, raid on horseback

Origin: , from Middle English rade

Origin: , from Old English rād, a riding, road; see reidh- in Indo-European roots

Related Forms:

raidˈer noun

Word History: Few soldiers traveling a road to carry out a raid would connect the words road and raid. However, both descend from the same Old English word rād. Old English rād meant “the act of riding” and “the act of riding with a hostile intent; that is, a raid,” senses that no longer exist for our word road. The ai in raid represents the standard development in the northern dialects of Old English long a, while the oa in road represents the standard development of Old English long a in the rest of the English dialects. It was left to Sir Walter Scott to revive the Scots form raid with the sense “a military expedition on horseback.” The Scots were not the only ones conducting raids, however. We find these words in the Middle English Coventry Leet Book: “aftur a Rode … made uppon the Scottes at thende of this last somer.” While road is not used in this way any more in English, a trace of this usage is still detectable in the compound inroad, literally “a riding or advance on or in.”

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