conflict

[ verb kuhn-flikt; noun kon-flikt ]

/ verb kənˈflɪkt; noun ˈkɒn flɪkt /

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See synonyms for: conflict / conflicted / conflicting / conflicts on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object)

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.

to fight or contend; do battle.

noun

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

controversy; quarrel: conflicts between parties.

discord of action, feeling, or effect; antagonism or opposition, as of interests or principles: a conflict of ideas.

a striking together; collision.

incompatibility or interference, as of one idea, desire, event, or activity with another: a conflict in the schedule.

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

OTHER WORDS FOR conflict

1 collide, oppose.

3 encounter, siege.

5 contention, opposition.

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OPPOSITES FOR conflict

4 accord.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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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

synonym study for conflict

3. See fight.

OTHER WORDS FROM conflict

con·flic·tion, nouncon·flic·tive, con·flic·to·ry

[kuhn-flik-tuh-ree], /kənˈflɪk tə ri/, adjectivenon·con·flic·tive, adjectivepre·con·flict, verb (used without object)

pre·con·flict, nounself-con·flict, nounun·con·flic·tive, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use conflict in a sentence

We see detoxing as a path to transcendence, a symbol of modern urban virtue and self-transformation through abstinence.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze|Lizzie Crocker|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Stephanie Giorgio, a classical musician, credits The Class for helping her cope with anxiety, focus, fear, and self-doubt.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze|Lizzie Crocker|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
For someone with anorexia, self-starvation makes them feel better.
How Skinny Is Too Skinny? Israel Bans ‘Underweight’ Models|Carrie Arnold|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
In the middle of all of that past suffering and present-day conflict, this Cosby bomb was dropped.
Phylicia Rashad and the Cult of Cosby Truthers|Stereo Williams|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST

I went into the audition as Fericito, the Venezuelan percussionist, and then I did a self-defense expert.
Coffee Talk with Fred Armisen: On ‘Portlandia,’ Meeting Obama, and Taylor Swift’s Greatness|Marlow Stern|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Let the thought of self pass in, and the beauty of great action is gone, like the bloom from a soiled flower.
Pearls of Thought|Maturin M. Ballou
Now this setting up of an orderly law-abiding self seems to me to imply that there are impulses which make for order.
Children's Ways|James Sully
At present, Louis was too self-absorbed by the struggles within him, to look deep into what was passing around him.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter
He must trust to his human merits, and not miracles, for his Sonship is of no value in this conflict.
Solomon and Solomonic Literature|Moncure Daniel Conway
But to wave this discourse of Heathens, how many self-contradicting principles are there held among Christians?
The Life and Most Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner (1801)|Daniel Defoe

British Dictionary definitions for conflict

conflict

noun (ˈkɒnflɪkt)

a struggle or clash between opposing forces; battle

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

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

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

verb (kənˈflɪkt) (intr)

to come into opposition; clash

to fight

Derived forms of conflict

confliction, nounconflictive or conflictory, adjective

Word Origin for conflict

C15: from Latin conflictus, from conflīgere to combat, from flīgere to strike

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

conflict

OTHER WORDS FOR conflict

OPPOSITES FOR conflict

Origin of conflict

synonym study for conflict

OTHER WORDS FROM conflict

Words related to conflict

How to use conflict in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for conflict

Derived forms of conflict

Word Origin for conflict