war

7 definitions • 20 examples

armed fighting between two or more countries or groups, or a particular example of this:

nuclear war

a war film/grave/hero/poet

go 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.