strife

[ strahyf ]

noun

1. vigorous or bitter conflict, discord, or antagonism:

   to be at strife.

   Synonyms: opposition, contrariety, disagreement, difference

   Antonyms: peace

2. a quarrel, struggle, or clash:

   armed strife.

   Synonyms: conflict, fight

   Antonyms: peace

3. competition or rivalry:

   the strife of the marketplace.

4. Archaic. strenuous effort.

strife

/ straɪf /

noun

1. angry or violent struggle; conflict
2. rivalry or contention, esp of a bitter kind
3. trouble or discord of any kind

   to get into strife

4. archaic.
   striving

Other Words From

• strifeful adjective
• strifeless adjective
• under·strife noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of strife¹

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English strif, from Old French estrif, akin to estriver; strive

Word History and Origins

Origin of strife¹

C13: from Old French estrif, probably from estriver to strive

Example Sentences

Their bonds become solid and even unshakable, no matter what strife they face.

From Vox

They kicked off the new season with a serious reflection on internal strife at the Times, grappling with their own feelings about the “N Word.”

From Time

They’re amazed that Americans fought in the Spanish Civil War as part of the International Brigades and that poetry appeared in radical journals in the midst of the strife.

From MIT Technology Review

Then imagine being shocked at the strife and hostility that results.

From Washington Post

That sense of abandon and determination guarantees that the next era of social strife might once again find Gang of Four as its soundtrack.

From Washington Post

Left and right think the way to address racial strife is through policy.

From The Daily Beast

There were stories of distant strife, in Bosnia, Rwanda, and Northern Ireland, and those stories had the whiff of a different era.

From The Daily Beast

Sectarian strife now empowers the civil wars in Syria, Iraq and Yemen and Al Qaedaism flourishes in the chaos.

From The Daily Beast

With so many areas for potential strife, none of the past five Home Secretaries lasted more than two years in the job.

From The Daily Beast

After all, the biggest names in the art world have cultivated their craft through heartbreak and emotional strife.

From The Daily Beast

Never would the instance that had brought turmoil and strife into his life trouble him again.

From Project Gutenberg

Woe is me, my mother: why hast thou borne me a man of strife, a man of contention to all the earth?

From Project Gutenberg

The utmost circumspection became necessary, and the young preacher had to bear up against much strife and opposition.

From Project Gutenberg

Midway down the page was more about the threatened strife in the numbers racket.

From Project Gutenberg

It shocked me greatly, she said; but perhaps the old man is happier in a world far from strife and care.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• animosity
• bickering
• clash
• conflict
• controversy
• disagreement
• discord
• dispute
• dissension
• disunity
• fighting
• friction
• quarrel
• rivalry
• squabble
• warfare
• wrangle
• wrangling