Jump To:

• civil war
  civil war

  noun

  a war between political factions or regions within the same country.
• Civil War
  Civil War

  noun

  English history the conflict between Charles I and the Parliamentarians resulting from disputes over their respective prerogatives. Parliament gained decisive victories at Marston Moor in 1644 and Naseby in 1645, and Charles was executed in 1649

civil war

American  

[siv-uhl wawr] / ˈsɪv əl ˈwɔr /

noun

civil wars plural

1. a war between political factions or regions within the same country.

---

civil war ¹ British  

noun

1. war between parties, factions, or inhabitants of different regions within the same nation

---

Civil War ² British  

noun

1. English history the conflict between Charles I and the Parliamentarians resulting from disputes over their respective prerogatives. Parliament gained decisive victories at Marston Moor in 1644 and Naseby in 1645, and Charles was executed in 1649

2. history the war fought from 1861 to 1865 between the North and the South, sparked off by Lincoln's election as president but with deep-rooted political and economic causes, exacerbated by the slavery issue. The advantages of the North in terms of population, finance, and communications brought about the South's eventual surrender at Appomattox

---

Civil War Cultural  

1. The war fought in the United States between northern (Union) and southern (Confederate) states from 1861 to 1865, in which the Confederacy sought to establish itself as a separate nation. The Civil War is also known as the War for Southern Independence and as the War between the States. The war grew out of deep-seated differences between the social structure and economy of North and South, most notably over slavery; generations of political maneuvers had been unable to overcome these differences (see Missouri Compromise and Compromise of 1850). The secession of the southern states began in late 1860, after Abraham Lincoln was elected president. The Confederacy was formed in early 1861. The fighting began with the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter. Most of the battles took place in the South, but one extremely crucial episode, the Battle of Gettysburg, was fought in the North. The war ended with the surrender of General Robert E. Lee to General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House. (See Battle of Bull Run, Battle of Chancellorsville, Emancipation Proclamation, and Sherman's march to the sea.)

---

Discover More

The Civil War has been the most serious test yet of the ability of the United States to remain one nation.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• civil wars
  plural

Etymology

Origin of civil war

First recorded in 1540–50

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

civil war Civil War

A haven for refugees fleeing a civil war in the late ’90s, Minnesota is home to some 80,000 people of Somali descent, most of whom are citizens.

From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026

Saudi Arabia intervened militarily against the Houthis a decade ago after the rebel group took over San’a and swath of territory during Yemen’s civil war.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026

Under the Obama administration, an international coalition targeting the Libyan regime of Muammar Gaddafi during the country’s 2011 civil war struck his fleeing convoy, leading to his capture and killing by rebel fighters.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2026

But the deadly bombing at the Damascus cafe last week was the latest security challenge for the new Islamist authorities as they try to reunify the country after more than 13 years of civil war.

From Barron's ● Jul. 7, 2026

And we have never talked about finding out that Papa had anonymously donated to the children’s hospitals and motherless babies’ homes and disabled veterans from the civil war.

From "Purple Hibiscus" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

“Sherman’s March” loosely explored McElwee’s hapless search for love during a trip to his native South, where he planned on making a film about a Civil War campaign through the area.

From Salon ● Jul. 24, 2026

Did you get to see the 2024 film Civil War, with its dystopian depiction of a present day USA in the midst of a violent meltdown?

From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026

That landmark picture features McElwee, then in his mid-30s, as he tries to chronicle the exploits of Union Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman, who laid siege to the South during the Civil War.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2026

We drew a lot of inspiration from the Congresses that wrote the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments after the Civil War.

From Slate ● Jul. 13, 2026

The Civil War, for example, was a direct consequence of the decision to evade and delay the slavery question during the most vulnerable early years of the republic.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis