militarism

American  

[mil-i-tuh-riz-uhm] / ˈmɪl ɪ təˌrɪz əm /

noun

1. a strong military spirit or policy.

2. the principle or policy of maintaining a large military establishment.

3. the tendency to regard military efficiency as the supreme ideal of the state and to subordinate all other interests to those of the military.

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militarism British  

/ ˈmɪlɪtəˌrɪzəm /

noun

1. military spirit; pursuit of military ideals

2. domination by the military in the formulation of policies, ideals, etc, esp on a political level

3. a policy of maintaining a strong military organization in aggressive preparedness for war

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• antimilitarism
  noun
• promilitarism
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of militarism

1860–65; < French militarisme, equivalent to militar- (< Latin mīlitār ( is ) military ) + -isme -ism

Explanation

Places where armed government forces have a strong presence are usually under militarism. A system of militarism would probably buy weapons and outfit soldiers before anything else. Some countries govern through militarism to keep their territories under strong and often bullied rule and to let other countries know that they have guns and bombs and they're not afraid to use them — even on their own people. Militarism often is paired with other nouns like dictatorship showing the strict power of the leadership.

Example Sentences

Supporters saw pacifism as a moral improvement on Japan's wartime militarism.

From BBC • May 7, 2026

In his 1953 speech “The Chance for Peace,” a Republican president warned about the human cost of militarism.

From Salon • Apr. 7, 2026

Beijing’s apoplectic response to Takaichi’s perceived intervention in China’s affairs has included intense personal attacks on the new prime minister, often linking her with the militarism that fueled Japan’s brutal conduct in World War II.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 24, 2025

Victims of Japanese aggression during the first half of the 20th century, especially China and the Koreas, see the shrine as a symbol of Japanese militarism.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 3, 2024

These settler-soldiers perfected an approach to warfare that formed the basis of US militarism into the twenty-first century.

From "An Indigenous People’s History of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz