envelopment

[ en-vel-uh p-muh nt ]

/ ɛnˈvɛl əp mənt /

an act of enveloping.

the state of being enveloped.

a wrapping or covering.

Military. an attack on an enemy's flank.

Origin of envelopment

First recorded in 1755–65; envelop + -ment

pre·en·vel·op·ment, noun

Never attempt the envelopment of both flanks unless you greatly outnumber your enemy.

The Plattsburg Manual |O.O. Ellis and E.B. Garey
He had adopted the well-known African method of envelopment—the crescent, with the horns well forward.

The Witch Doctor and other Rhodesian Studies |Frank Worthington
An envelopment of both flanks should never be attempted without a very decided superiority in numbers.

Infantry Drill Regulations, United States Army, 1911 |United States War Department
The advantage of envelopment lies in the longer concentric line, with its preponderance of rifles and its converging fire.

Infantry Drill Regulations, United States Army, 1911 |United States War Department

Nothing but the news of the armistice of Leoben saved him from envelopment and surrender.

Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 2 |Various