as in erosion
a gradual weakening, loss, or destruction
took the machinery out of operation since attrition had led to the main mechanism's breaking
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Recent Examples of attrition
Russia’s advance in Ukraine has largely settled into a grinding war of attrition, and analysts say that Russian President Vladimir Putin is in no rush to find a settlement, despite his army’s difficulties on the roughly 600-mile front line.
—
Kamila Hrabchuk, Los Angeles Times, 28 Jan. 2026
Companies show strong engagement scores, attrition risk flagged as low.
—Vibhas Ratanjee, Forbes.com, 27 Jan. 2026
His own injury contributed to the attrition.
—Shawn McFarland, Dallas Morning News, 19 Jan. 2026
On top of that, an operation to destabilize NATO would likely be a different kind of conflict than the territorial war of attrition in Ukraine.
—Marc Champion, Twin Cities, 15 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for attrition
Kamila Hrabchuk, Los Angeles Times, 28 Jan. 2026
Companies show strong engagement scores, attrition risk flagged as low.
—Vibhas Ratanjee, Forbes.com, 27 Jan. 2026
His own injury contributed to the attrition.
—Shawn McFarland, Dallas Morning News, 19 Jan. 2026
On top of that, an operation to destabilize NATO would likely be a different kind of conflict than the territorial war of attrition in Ukraine.
—Marc Champion, Twin Cities, 15 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for attrition
Recent Examples of Synonyms for attrition
erosion
Noun
-
The erosion of physician fees by inflation has also been offset by an increase in volume.—
Chris Pope,
Washington Post,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Any future erosion would have to come overwhelmingly from one of two places.—
Craig Gilbert,
jsonline.com,
9 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Attrition.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/attrition. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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