war crime

American  

noun

1. Usually war crimes crimes committed against an enemy, prisoners of war, or subjects in wartime that violate international agreements or, as in the case of genocide, are offenses against humanity.

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war crime British  

noun

1. a crime committed in wartime in violation of the accepted rules and customs of war, such as genocide, ill-treatment of prisoners of war, etc

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• war criminal
  noun

Etymology

Origin of war crime

First recorded in 1940–45

Example Sentences

At the law school at Damascus University, more than 300 students attended a recent seminar addressed by international war crime legal specialists including Stephen Rapp, a former U.S. ambassador-at-large for war crimes issues.

From Slate • May 27, 2026

When nations are openly engaged in armed conflict, as the U.S. and Iran are, neither the threat nor the execution of large-scale attacks on infrastructure has been prosecuted as a war crime.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 15, 2026

These more modern firearms became not only practical tools of war, crime or self-defense but symbolic objects in their own right.

From Salon • Sep. 16, 2025

Mr Türk, who is the UN high commissioner for human rights, said that if intent was proven, that would amount to a war crime.

From BBC • Mar. 28, 2024

Whether they talked about war, crime, prostitution, political corruption, or any other social evil, what they wanted was to tear down the old ramshackle structure, and to put in its place something new and intelligent.

From Jimmie Higgins by Sinclair, Upton