战术 zhànshù tactics
How to remember 战术: 战 war + 术 skill = tactics.
Characters
How it is used
- Tactics - the concrete methods for winning a specific engagement - 灵活的战术 (línghuó de zhànshù) flexible tactics.
- The lower, hands-on level paired against 战略 (zhànlüè, strategy, the big-picture plan): 战略/战术 is the standard strategy-vs-tactics split.
- Widely used in sports, business, and games, not just war.