A swift attack made in response to an opponent's attack; a defensive move that becomes an offensive action.
From Latin 'contra-' (against) + 'attack' (from Old French 'atacquier'). The combined term emerged in military terminology, though the concept of responding to force with force is ancient.
In chess, the counterattack is strategically more efficient than direct defense—by attacking your opponent while they're attacking you, you force them to respond to your threat instead, which is why defensive counterplay appears in game theory.
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