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DEFCON

American  
[def-kon] / ˈdɛf kɒn /

noun

  1. any of several alert statuses for U.S. military forces, ranked numerically from normal, 5, to maximum readiness, 1.


Etymology

Origin of DEFCON

def(ense readiness) con(dition)

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The episode is also remembered as the last time a U.S. president resorted to an unvarnished nuclear threat, when Richard Nixon warned Moscow off by raising the U.S. military alert status to Defcon 3.

From The Wall Street Journal

Richards has hit 'defcon' on 10 occasions this season and missed out by a point four times too.

From BBC

For years, historians followed the bomb’s echoes through the Cold War: Bikini Atoll and nuclear bunkers, Strangelove and SALT, détente and Defcon, Star Wars and saber rattling, to hit a few low points.

From The Wall Street Journal

You can start him confidently in most games, given his defcon potential.

From BBC

He has returns in three of his past four games - two assists and one defcon performance.

From BBC