Flanking

Part of speech: verb, adjective

Definitions

1. Positioned on the side of an object or area ; executing an attack or maneuver against the side of an enemy or formation
2. Located alongside something to provide support or protection ; advancing against a target by approaching from the side to gain advantage
3. Situated on each side of a central point or structure ; engaging in combat by striking the side rather than the front

Etymology: The word "flanking" is the present participle of "flank," and the noun "flank" began as a word for the body, not for a battle line. Its ancestor, Old French "flanc," probably came from a Frankish word "hlanca," meaning the loin or side of an animal, the soft part above the hip. That Frankish word had a deeper sense of bending or curving, and it is related to the English "lank," meaning slender or loose. So the military idea of guarding or attacking from the side grew out of the anatomy of the side of the body. English took "flanc" in the Late Middle English period, and the word first referred to the side of a creature. The sense of a side of an army came later, as soldiers were described by where they stood in relation to the main body. Over time, the word's meaning moved from flesh to position, and from position to protection: to flank something is to stand at its side and guard it.

Synonyms: bordering, adjacent, side-by-side, alongside, parallel

Antonyms: central, isolated, disconnected, apart, separated