warfare
Americannoun
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the process of military struggle between two nations or groups of nations; war.
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armed conflict between two massed enemies, armies, or the like.
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conflict, especially when vicious and unrelenting, between competitors, political rivals, etc.
noun
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the act, process, or an instance of waging war
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conflict, struggle, or strife
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of warfare
1425–75; late Middle English werefare, i.e., a faring forth to war; see war 1, fare
Explanation
When two countries fight violently with each other, the conflict is called warfare. Whenever a group engages in war or violence, it can be described with the noun warfare, which is another way of saying "the act of war." Terrorists might use guerrilla warfare tactics against their enemies, and governments may resort to warfare to put down revolutions. The word war originally comes from a Germanic root, werso, which means "to perplex or confuse."
Vocabulary lists containing warfare
Mesopotamia - Introductory
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"Culture Clash"
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Mesopotamia - Middle School and High School
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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.
Teddy Young, a specialist in warfare intelligence, has been "accused of being a spy".
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
The rise of drone warfare brings questions about how to protect large and expensive assets like bombers—even thousands of miles from front lines of conflict.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
Joshua Ransford never worried about electronic warfare when he served as a U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
Last week, the Pentagon announced that Musk would help lead a new project examining the future of warfare.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
Mustard gas, which had been used in World War I by both opposing fighting forces, was so horrible that it had been banned from warfare in the 1925 Geneva Gas Protocol.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
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.
