turf war
Britishnoun
-
a dispute between criminals or gangs over the right to operate within a particular area
-
any dispute in which one party seeks to obtain increased rights or influence
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 division is under pressure to show quick results, but it has struggled to recruit prosecutors and has been slowed by an internal turf war that has caused some promising investigations to languish.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
A turf war over the online home listings business has been brewing for a while.
From Barron's ● Jan. 1, 2026
These are some of the ominous warnings issued in Australia each spring, as magpies and humans begin their annual turf war.
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2023
"It's almost as though there's a turf war going on here among the lawyers," Vance said.
From Salon ● May 22, 2023
Yo, Kings, rest easy, fellows—for once, we can report it wasn't a turf war.
From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon
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.
