strafe

See also: Strafe

English

Etymology

From German strafe (“punish”) (a conjugated form of strafen), from phrases like "Gott strafe England" ("God punish England") which the British saw during the First World War.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /stɹeɪf/
• IPA^(key): /stɹɑf/
• Rhymes: -eɪf

Verb

1. (transitive) To attack (ground targets) with automatic gunfire from a low-flying aircraft.
2. (intransitive, video games) To sidestep; to move sideways without turning (a core mechanic of most first-person shooters).
   • 2001, Jana Hallford, Swords and circuitry: a designer's guide to computer role playing games:

     If the NPC is close to the player, he may also try using the tried-and-true Quake circle-strafing technique.

   • 2007, Stephen Cawood, Pat McGee, Microsoft XNA Game Studio Creator's Guide:

     A strafe is a side-to-side camera movement. If you're a fan of first-person shooter games, you know how fundamental strafing can be to a game.

Translations

to attack with automatic gunfire

• Italian: mitragliare (it)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Serbo-Croatian: mitraljirati (sh)

Noun

strafe (plural strafes)

1. An attack of machine-gun or cannon fire from a low-flying aircraft.
2. (video games) A sideways movement without turning.
   • 2004, Marc Saltzman, Game Creation and Careers: Insider Secrets from Industry Experts:

     We also have added a new game control called the "defensive strafe," in which the user can press a button and stay facing forward.

Translations

an attack from a low-flying aircraft

• Italian: mitragliamento m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Serbo-Croatian: mitraljiranje n

Anagrams

• afters, farest, faster, freats

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German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈʃtʁaːfə/

Verb

strafe

1. first-person singular and imperative of strafen