war

Meaning

1. Organized, large-scale, armed conflict between countries or between national, ethnic, or other sizeable groups, usually but not always involving active engagement of military forces.
2. A particular conflict of this kind.
3. Protracted armed conflict against irregular forces, particularly groups considered terrorists.
4. Any protracted conflict, particularly
5. Any protracted conflict, particularly
6. Any protracted conflict, particularly
7. Any protracted conflict, particularly
8. (obsolete) An assembly of weapons; instruments of war.
9. (obsolete) Armed forces.
10. Any of a family of card games where all cards are dealt at the beginning of play and players attempt to capture them all, typically involving no skill and only serving to kill time.

battle

fight

make war

fight a war

wage war

military campaign

fine and sword

close combat

find refuge

Great War

make war on

pupil of eye

military affairs

armed warrior

arms and cavalry

shield and halberd

armed fighting

war power

grappling

host

battalia

fire and sword

kill

🔪🩸👤

Frequency

Pronounced as (IPA)

/wɔː/

From Middle English werre, from Late Old English werre, wyrre (“armed conflict”), from Old Northern French werre (compare modern French guerre), from Medieval Latin werra, from Frankish *werru (“confusion; quarrel”), from Proto-Indo-European *wers- (“to mix up, confuse, beat, thresh”). Gradually displaced native Old English beadu, hild, ġewinn, orleġe, wīġ, and many others as the general term for "war" during the Middle English period. Related to Old High German werra (“confusion, strife, quarrel”) and German verwirren (“to confuse”), but not to Wehr (“defense”). Also related to Old Saxon werran (“to confuse, perplex”), Dutch war (“confusion, disarray”), West Frisian war (“confusion”), Old English wyrsa, wiersa (“worse”), Old Norse verri (“worse, orig. confounded, mixed up”), Italian guerra (“war”). There may be a connection with worse and wurst.