conflict

American  

[kuhn-flikt, kon-flikt] / kənˈflɪkt, ˈkɒn flɪkt /

verb (used without object)

1. to come into collision or disagreement; be contradictory, at variance, or in opposition; clash.

   The account of one eyewitness conflicted with that of the other. My class conflicts with my going to the concert.

   Synonyms:

   oppose, collide

2. to fight or contend; do battle.

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noun

1. a fight, battle, or struggle, especially a prolonged struggle; strife.

   Synonyms:

   siege, encounter

2. controversy; quarrel.

   conflicts between parties.

   Antonyms:

   accord

3. discord of action, feeling, or effect; antagonism or opposition, as of interests or principles.

   a conflict of ideas.

   Synonyms:

   opposition, contention

4. a striking together; collision.

5. incompatibility or interference, as of one idea, desire, event, or activity with another.

   a conflict in the schedule.

6. Psychiatry. a mental struggle arising from opposing demands or impulses.

conflict British  

noun

1. a struggle or clash between opposing forces; battle

2. a state of opposition between ideas, interests, etc; disagreement or controversy

3. a clash, as between two appointments made for the same time

4. psychol opposition between two simultaneous but incompatible wishes or drives, sometimes leading to a state of emotional tension and thought to be responsible for neuroses

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verb

1. to come into opposition; clash

2. to fight

Related Words

See fight.

Other Word Forms

• confliction
  noun
• conflictive
  adjective
• conflictory
  adjective
• nonconflictive
  adjective
• preconflict
  noun
• preconflict
  verb (used without object)
• self-conflict
  noun
• unconflictive
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of conflict

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English (noun), from Latin conflīctus “a striking together,” equivalent to conflīg(ere) “to strike together, contend” ( con- con- + flīgere “to strike”) + -tus suffix of verb action; (verb) from Latin conflīctus, past participle of conflīgere, or by verb use of the noun

Explanation

A conflict is a struggle or an opposition. If you and your best friend both fall in love with the same person, you will have to find some way to resolve the conflict. Conflict comes from the Latin word for striking, but it isn't always violent. Conflict can arise from opposing ideas. If you want to turn your empty lot into a community garden but your wife envisions a shooting range, you have a conflict. If you're torn between two different desires, you're conflicted. Conflict can also be a verb. If you schedule a dentist appointment that conflicts with a meeting, you'll have to cancel one of them.

Example Sentences

The outbreak began in Ituri Province, a tropical-forest region of roughly 5.7 million people in Congo’s far northeast, where health facilities are few and far between, and conflict has caused people to flee their homes.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 17, 2026

The conflict reflects a broader challenge in California: how to move increasingly clean power across the Golden State while simultaneously preserving the deserts, wildlife habitats and public lands that define it.

From Los Angeles Times • May 17, 2026

Hezbollah does not appear to have shared any footage of similar strikes from the conflict beginning on 2 March.

From BBC • May 16, 2026

The latest evidence on consumer spending — the main engine of the economy — shows little or no pullback in household purchases since the Iran conflict began at the end of February.

From MarketWatch • May 16, 2026

The new history of science, beginning with Kuhn, tried to ground these new ways of thinking in intellectual communities: the success of new ideas depended upon conflict and competition within and between communities of thinkers.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Related Words

• battle
• clash
• combat
• competition
• rivalry
• strife
• struggle
• war