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Synonyms

war game

American  

noun

Military.

  1. a simulated military operation, carried out to test the validity of a war plan or operational concept: in its simplest form, two opposing teams of officers take part, and when necessary, military units of the required strength are employed.

war game British  

noun

  1. a notional tactical exercise for training military commanders, in which no military units are actually deployed

  2. a game in which model soldiers are used to create battles, esp past battles, in order to study tactics

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. (intr) to prepare for battle by considering possible tactics and enemy responses

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of war game

First recorded in 1820–30

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The world's best-selling war game saga, "Call of Duty", releases its latest instalment Friday, under pressure to rival the strong launch of longtime competitor "Battlefield".

From Barron's • Nov. 13, 2025

“They shouldn’t be the rope in this tug of war game that’s going on,” said Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association.

From Salon • Nov. 6, 2025

The warplane flights Sunday near Taiwan were described in Chinese state media as “record-breaking,” and coincided with a major war game exercise around the island that included 20 PLA naval vessels.

From Washington Times • Sep. 18, 2023

Ridgeline is developing a game set in the universe of EA blockbuster war game Battlefield.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 12, 2023

The Pentagon was in the earliest stages of planning for a war game that they were calling Millennium Challenge ’02.

From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.