conscription
noun
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With its scrip- root, conscription means basically writing someone's name on a list—a list that, unfortunately, a lot of people usually don't want to be on. Conscription has existed at least since ancient Egypt's Old Kingdom (27th century B.C.), though universal conscription has been rare throughout history. Forms of conscription were used by Prussia, Switzerland, Russia, and other European powers in the 17th and 18th centuries. In the U.S., conscription was first applied during the Civil War, by both the North and the South. In the North there were pockets of resistance, and the draft led to riots in several cities. The U.S. abandoned conscription at the end of the war and didn't revive it until World War I.
Examples of conscription in a Sentence
Dan Mangan,kamaron McNair, CNBC, 9 Apr. 2026
Meanwhile, Netanyahu’s government is pushing a divisive conscription bill that would entrench the existing exemption for ultra-Orthodox men from mandatory military service, when the Israeli army publicly acknowledges a shortfall of 15,000 soldiers during wartime.
—Tal Shalev, CNN Money, 5 Apr. 2026
It's long been Danish law for physically fit men over age 18 to enlist in conscription, and its military ranks are first filled by male and female volunteers.
—Janine Henni, PEOPLE, 31 Mar. 2026
Military conscription could resume if warranted by a national emergency or large-scale war.
—George Petras, USA Today, 30 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for conscription
Cite this Entry
“Conscription.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/conscription. Accessed 14 Apr. 2026.
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