warship
Americannoun
-
warships
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of warship
Explanation
A warship is a military sea vessel that's usually armed with weapons. A country's navy uses warships in battles or to transport troops. A battleship is one specific kind of warship, a very large one that's outfitted with weapons and heavily defended against attack. All warships are prepared for war (which is where they get their name), and most of them are controlled by the naval forces of a nation. Many countries move their warships into particular regions to exert political force on adversaries, or send them to protect civilian or cargo ships from pirate attacks.
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.
See Examples For:
Depending on the model, a sea drone can cost anywhere from thousands to millions of US dollars, and take weeks or months to build -- still much cheaper and faster than a warship or submarine.
From Barron's ● Nov. 3, 2026
Families have welcomed home the thousands of crew members on board the USS Abraham Lincoln after the warship spent more than 300 days at sea.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
And on Tuesday Denmark also accused a Russian warship of firing two emergency flares at one of its helicopters while it was tracking the vessel in the Baltic Sea.
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
Navy warship with ballistic missiles twice in the last two days.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026
What was not lost, however, was the Turtle’s place in history as the first submarine ever to attack an enemy warship.
From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler
Russian warships retreated to port and, under international pressure, stopped targeting merchant vessels carrying grain and other foodstuffs from Ukraine.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 12, 2026
The same yards can be seen building an array of high-end warships for China’s navy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
More U.S. warships are en route, carrying thousands of Marines.
From Slate ● Oct. 30, 2026
The Commons Defence Committee said a shortage of Royal Navy warships and submarines was leaving the country's critical infrastructure in the High North, including undersea cables and energy supplies, exposed.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
“With this gift of innocence and beauty, we honor both the gods,” he proclaimed, as the warships of the Iron Fleet rowed past the burning ketch.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
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