war powers

American  

plural noun

1. the powers exercised by the president or by Congress during a war or a crisis affecting national security.

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Etymology

Origin of war powers

First recorded in 1760–70

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

war powers

On a special Slate Plus extra episode of Amicus, Mark Joseph Stern spoke with Eugene Fidell about Trump’s startling claim of unilateral war powers.

From Slate ● Mar. 2, 2026

Representatives Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., are looking to force a vote on a war powers resolution.

From Salon ● Feb. 19, 2026

The day after that meeting, the war powers resolution was blocked by two votes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 14, 2026

Domestically, opposition politicians chanted the traditional laments about executive usurpation and congressional war powers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 4, 2026

Being an exercise of the war powers of the Government, such confiscation is not affected by the restrictions of the Fifth and Sixth Amendments.

From The Constitution of the United States of America: Analysis and Interpretation Annotations of Cases Decided by the Supreme Court of the United States to June 30, 1952 by Edward Samuel Corwin