war

¹

[ wawr ]

noun

1. a conflict carried on by force of arms, as between nations or between parties within a nation; warfare, as by land, sea, or air.
2. a state or period of armed hostility or active military operations:

   The two nations were at war with each other.

3. a contest carried on by force of arms, as in a series of battles or campaigns:

   the War of 1812.

4. armed fighting, as a science, profession, activity, or art; methods or principles of waging armed conflict:

   War is the soldier's business.

5. active hostility or contention; conflict; contest:

   a war of words.

6. aggressive business conflict, as through severe price cutting in the same industry or any other means of undermining competitors:

   a fare war among airlines; a trade war between nations.

7. a struggle to achieve a goal:

   the war on cancer;

   a war against poverty;

   a war for hearts and minds.

8. Cards.
   1. a game for two or more persons, played with a 52-card pack evenly divided between the players, in which each player turns up one card at a time with the higher card taking the lower, and in which, when both turned up cards match, each player lays one card face down and turns up another, the player with the higher card of the second turn taking all the cards laid down.
   2. an occasion in this game when both turned up cards match.
9. Archaic. a battle.

verb (used without object)

, warred, war·ring.

1. to make or carry on war; fight:

   to war with a neighboring nation.

2. to carry on active hostility or contention:

   Throughout her life she warred with sin and corruption.

3. to be in conflict or in a state of strong opposition:

   The temptation warred with his conscience.

adjective

1. of, belonging to, used in, or due to war:

   war preparations; war hysteria.

war

²

[ wahr ]

adjective

, Scot. and North England.

1. worse.

war.

³

abbreviation for

1. warrant.

War.

¹

abbreviation for

1. Warwickshire

war

²

/ wɔː /

noun

1. open armed conflict between two or more parties, nations, or states belligerentmartial
2. a particular armed conflict

   the 1973 war in the Middle East

3. the techniques of armed conflict as a study, science, or profession
4. any conflict or contest

   a war of wits

   the war against crime

5. modifier of, relating to, resulting from, or characteristic of war

   a war story

   war damage

   a war hero

6. to have had a good war
   to have made the most of the opportunities presented to one during wartime
7. in the wars informal.
   (esp of a child) hurt or knocked about, esp as a result of quarrelling and fighting

verb

1. intr to conduct a war

Word History and Origins

Origin of war¹

First recorded before 1150; Middle English noun wer(re), war(re), late Old English werre, wyrre, from Old North French wer(r)e, waire, from Old Frankish werra (unrecorded), from Germanic; cognate with Old High German werra, Middle Low German, Middle Dutch werre “strife, discord”; verb derivative of the noun; akin to war ², worse

Origin of war²

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English wer(re), war(re), from Old Norse verri worse

Word History and Origins

Origin of war¹

C12: from Old Northern French werre (variant of Old French guerre ), of Germanic origin; related to Old High German werra

Idioms and Phrases

• all's fair in love and war
• at war
• been to the wars
• declare war
• tug of war

Example Sentences

Though a loyal supporter of Sir Tony during his time in office, Lord Prescott was later critical of Britain’s involvement in the Iraq war, telling the BBC that the 2003 invasion of the country "cannot be justified".

From BBC

While ultimately distancing himself from Tony Blair's decision to go to war in Iraq, he defended his former boss' legacy and was equally supportive of the different leaders that followed him.

From BBC

The Russian president needs support for his war in Ukraine while North Korea needs Russia's space technology which could aid its missile programme.

From BBC

Last week's report by Human Rights Watch said Israel had committed war crimes and crimes against humanity by deliberately causing the mass displacement of Palestinians in Gaza.

From BBC

Fourteen of the 15 council members voted in favour of the draft, which demanded that the war in Gaza "must end immediately, unconditionally and permanently and all remaining hostages must be immediately and unconditionally released".

From BBC

Related Words

• battle
• bloodshed
• combat
• conflict
• fighting
• hostility
• strife
• strike
• struggle
• warfare