military
Americanadjective
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of, for, or pertaining to the army or armed forces, often as distinguished from the navy.
from civilian to military life.
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of, for, or pertaining to war.
military preparedness.
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of or relating to soldiers.
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befitting, characteristic of, or noting a soldier.
a military bearing.
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following the life of a soldier.
a military career.
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performed by soldiers.
military duty.
noun
adjective
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of or relating to the armed forces (esp the army), warlike matters, etc
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of, characteristic of, or about soldiers
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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militarinessnoun
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antimilitaryadjective
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nonmilitaryadjective
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premilitaryadjective
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promilitaryadjective
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pseudomilitaryadjective
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quasi-militaryadjective
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supermilitaryadjective
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unmilitaryadjective
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militarilyadverb
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pseudomilitarilyadverb
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unmilitarilyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of military
1575–85; < Latin mīlitāri ( s ), equivalent to mīlit- (stem of mīles ) soldier + -āris -ary
Explanation
Ten, hut! So you'd like the definition of military? Yes, Sir! The adjective military is used to describe anything related to the armed forces or soldiers. Stemming from the Latin word for "soldier," military is a word that goes hand in hand with war. It's the military that protects a country's interests, lead by generals and powered by brave soldiers. When used as an adjective, military describes anything that's related to, well, the military: salutes, campaigns, uniforms, etc.
Vocabulary lists containing military
Veterans Day Vocabulary
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Fighting Words: Belli and Milit
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Franklin D. Roosevelt, "A Date That Will Live In Infamy" (1941)
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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.
In April 2025, Space Force, the branch of the military that protects U.S. interests in space, approved the company to launch seven military and intelligence-related missions valued at up to $2.4 billion.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 3, 2026
The powder maintained its performance for two years under room temperature and high humidity conditions, allowing it to remain ready for immediate use in harsh military or disaster environments.
From Science Daily • Jul. 2, 2026
The strike illustrates how closely civilian and military life can overlap, blurring the distinction between military targets and residential dwellings.
From BBC • Jul. 2, 2026
As the military escalation faded in the wake of the agreement, traders rapidly removed the geopolitical risk premium in oil prices, said Salih Yilmaz, senior industry analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence.
From MarketWatch • Jul. 2, 2026
In this way I sewed trousers, a shirt, and finally, a military jacket.
From "Not Nothing" by Gayle Forman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
