WAR | Meaning, Definition In Cambridge English Dictionary

Meaning of war in English warnoun [ C or U ] uk /wɔːr/ us /wɔːr/ Add to word list Add to word list A2 armed fighting between two or more countries or groups, or a particular example of this: nuclear war a war film/grave/hero/poetgo to war If this country goes to (= starts to fight in a) war we will have to face the fact that many people will die.declare war on Britain and France declared war on Germany in 1939 as a result of the invasion of Poland.war breaks out War broke out between the two countries after a border dispute.at war They've been at war for the last five years. He died in the First World War/the Vietnam war.  war of attrition a war that is fought over a long period and only ends when one side has neither the soldiers and equipment nor the determination left to continue fighting: The war of attrition between the two countries has lasted for decades now. See more  war of nerves a situation, often before a competition or battle, in which each opposing side attempts to frighten or discourage the other by making threats or by showing how strong it is: Protestors are waging a war of nerves with the police. See more C2 any situation in which there is strong competition between opposing sides or a great fight against something harmful: price war The past few months have witnessed a price war between leading supermarkets.wage war on/against The president vowed to wage war on/against terrorism.war on For thirty years, the war on drugs has used up enormous human and financial resources.

• The war has claimed thousands of lives.
• The prime minister is to meet his European counterparts to discuss the war against drugs.
• America declared war on Japan in 1941.
• There is likely to be civil war if the region tries to secede from the south.
• The number of casualties was appallingly high in both wars.

War

• air supremacy
• antebellum
• anti-militarism
• asymmetric warfare
• battle-scarred
• germ warfare
• gung-ho
• high-intensity conflict
• holy war
• SDI
• shadow war
• sinew
• sinews of war idiom
• smokescreen
• the Great War
• the Second World War
• wartime
• world war
• World War I
• World War II

See more results »

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Fighting Arguments & disagreements

Idioms

be in the wars war clouds are gathering (Definition of war from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

war | American Dictionary

warnoun [ C/U ] us /wɔr/ Add to word list Add to word list armed fighting between two or more countries or groups, or a particular example of such fighting: [ C ] Can any country fight two wars at the same time? [ U ] War is something to avoid. [ U ] Several nations were at war. A war can also be any situation in which there is strong competition between opposing sides or a joint effort against something harmful: [ C ] Airlines engage in fare wars to attract new customers. [ U ] It sometimes seems like the war on cancer has stalled. (Definition of war from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

war | Business English

warnoun [ C ]   COMMERCE, ECONOMICS uk /wɔːr/ us Add to word list Add to word list a situation in which businesses, countries, etc. compete against each other very strongly: In the supermarket war, Asda slashed the price of petrol.at war The banks are at war for each other's business accounts.lose/wage/win a war The EU is in danger of losing the propaganda war. See also bidding war price war sales war trade war (Definition of war from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press) What is the pronunciation of war?

Translations of war

in Chinese (Traditional) （國家或群體之間的）戰爭, 爭奪，競爭… See more in Chinese (Simplified) （国家或群体之间的）战争, 争夺，竞争… See more in Spanish guerra, lucha por el control, guerra [feminine… See more in Portuguese guerra, guerra [feminine]… See more in Marathi in Japanese in Turkish in French in Catalan in Dutch in Tamil in Hindi in Gujarati in Danish in Swedish in Malay in German in Norwegian in Urdu in Ukrainian in Telugu in Bengali in Czech in Indonesian in Thai in Vietnamese in Polish in Korean in Italian युध्द, संग्राम करणे… See more 戦争, 戦争（せんそう）, 戦（たたか）い… See more harp, savaş, kavga… See more guerre [feminine], lutte [feminine], (de) guerre… See more guerra… See more oorlog, oorlog voeren… See more இரண்டு அல்லது அதற்கு மேற்பட்ட நாடுகள் அல்லது குழுக்களுக்கு இடையில் ஆயுத சண்டை, அல்லது இதற்கு ஒரு குறிப்பிட்ட எடுத்துக்காட்டு, எதிரெதிர்த் தரப்புகளுக்கு இடையில் வலுவான போட்டி அல்லது தீங்கு விளைவிக்கும் ஒன்றுக்கு எதிராக ஒரு பெரிய போராட்டம் இருக்கும் எந்தவொரு சூழ்நிலையும்… See more युद्ध, बड़ी लड़ाई… See more યુદ્ધ, લડાઈ, લડત… See more krig, krigs-, være i krig… See more krig, kriga, föra krig mot… See more peperangan, berperang… See more der Krieg, Kriegs-…, sich bekriegen… See more krig [masculine], kamp [masculine], krig… See more جنگ, لڑائی… See more війна, воювати… See more యుద్దం… See more যুদ্ধ, লড়াই… See more válka, válečný, válčit… See more perang, berperang… See more สงคราม, ทำสงคราม… See more chiến tranh, gây chiến… See more wojna, walka, wojować… See more 전쟁… See more guerra, di guerra, (fare guerra)… See more Need a translator?

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wantonness wants phrase WAP wapiti war war bride war chest war clouds are gathering idiom war crime {{#randomImageQuizHook.filename}} {{#randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} Test your vocabulary with our fun image quizzes Try a quiz now {{/randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} {{^randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} {{/randomImageQuizHook.isQuiz}} {{/randomImageQuizHook.filename}}

More meanings of war

• civil war
• cold war
• prisoner of war
• tug of war
• war chest
• war crime
• war games

See all meanings

• sinews of war idiom
• war of nerves phrase
• war of attrition phrase
• have a good war idiom
• be on a war footing phrase
• war clouds are gathering idiom
• all's fair in love and war idiom

See all idioms and phrases

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sheepishly

UK /ˈʃiː.pɪʃ.li/ US /ˈʃiː.pɪʃ.li/

in a way that is embarrassed because you have done something wrong or silly

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• English   
  • Noun 
    • war
    • war of attrition
    • war of nerves
• American   Noun
• Business   Noun

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