tactic

Etymology

Borrowed from New Latin tactica, from Ancient Greek τακτικός (taktikós, “fit for ordering”), from τάσσω (tássō, “to order, to arrange”).

noun

1. A maneuver, or action calculated to achieve some end.
   Omar has challenged Elliott Abrams’s record in Latin America, taken a firm line against Saudi Arabia and the Emirates, and advocated for—wait for it—the two-state solution for Israel and Palestine (even though the headlines have focused on her expressing support for the right to boycott as a tactic). 2019-9-10, Jonathan Guyer, The American Prospect, number Fall 2019
2. (military) A maneuver used against an enemy.
3. (chess) A sequence of moves that limits the opponent's options and results in an immediate and tangible advantage, typically in the form of material.

adj

1. (dated, military) Tactical; of or relating to the art of military and naval tactics.
   But time will teach the Russ, ev'n conquering War Has handmaid arts: aye, aye, the Russ will woo All sciences that speed Bellona's car, All murder's tactic arts, and win them too […] 1831, Thomas Campbell, The Power of Russia
2. (chemistry) Describing a polymer whose repeat units are identical