Counterpunching

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Striking back at an opponent's blows in boxing with quick punches of one's own ; hitting back in response to an attack, especially in a sporting contest
2. Answering an adversary's attacks by landing return blows during a fight ; the act of retaliating with punches after absorbing an opponent's strike
3. Throwing a punch in reply to a blow received, a tactic used by boxers to turn defense into attack ; reacting to aggression by striking back

Etymology: Counterpunching is a boxing term built from two plain English parts. "Counter-" comes from the Latin "contra," meaning "against" or "in opposition," and it has long been used in English to signal a response aimed back at an opponent. "Punch" is the older and more familiar part: the noun and verb for a blow with the fist, and the word from which the boxing sense of the compound grows. To counterpunch, then, is to answer an opponent's blow with a blow of your own, usually by slipping or blocking an attack and striking back in the same motion. The compound has since moved beyond the ring, and people now speak of counterpunching in politics or argument whenever someone responds to an attack with an attack of their own. The verb form simply follows the usual pattern of adding "-ing" to make the present participle and gerund, so the word's history is the history of its two parts brought together.