Learn English – “Assault” vs. “Attack” in context

comparisonmeaning-in-contextword-choice

This is a statement about Switzerland that I have read somewhere in this site:

Not all countries are as small and as filled with impassable mountains. A seaborne assault on Switzerland is quite difficult.

I searched dictionaries for assault and found it is one synonym of attack, but not as general as attack is:

The Free Dictionary:

  1. A violent physical or verbal attack.

2.

a. A military attack, such as one launched against a fortified area or place.

b. The concluding stage of an attack in which close combat occurs with the enemy.

3.
law:

a. An unlawful threat or attempt to do bodily injury to another.

b. The act or an instance of unlawfully threatening or attempting to injure another.

4.

a. Law Sexual assault.

b. The crime of rape.

Is assault the the most natural choice for this context? If not, why not, and which word would native readers of English prefer instead?

Best Answer

A seaborne assault slithers smoothly off the tongue. All those sibilants! A seaborne attack jangles the nerves just a jot. For meaning, either one is fine. For sound, assault is definitely more musical and, IMHO, much better. Just an aesthetic choice by the writer.

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