civil war

noun

plural civil wars

: a war between opposing groups of citizens of the same country

a country on the brink of (a) civil war

—often used in the capitalized names of specific wars

the Spanish Civil War

(American/U.S.) Civil War monuments

Note: The American Civil War, fought 1861–1865 between the United States and 11 southern states that had seceded from it, is also commonly known as the U.S. Civil War, or especially in the U.S. as the War Between the States or simply the Civil War.

Examples of civil war in a Sentence

a region that has had many civil wars

The country is on the brink of civil war.

Recent Examples on the Web

Remnant Protocol takes place in a galaxy fractured by civil war after the leader of a sprawling empire, the Blessed Mother, was assassinated. —Alan Bradley, Space.com, 5 Jan. 2026

The Twin Cities are home to the US’s largest diaspora from Somalia, a small Muslim-majority nation on the Horn of Africa that has been rent by decades of civil war and entrenched poverty. —Zoe Sottile, CNN Money, 5 Jan. 2026

The result was civil war, fragmentation, militia rule and a prolonged struggle over sovereignty and economic development that continues today. —Monica Duffy Toft, Fortune, 5 Jan. 2026

The United States didn’t will this change into existence by itself; there was no love lost between Sharaa and Iran, the chief patron of the former Syrian regime that killed hundreds of thousands during the course of the civil war. —Daniel Depetris, Twin Cities, 4 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1533, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for civil war

• albacore
• alongshore
• antiwar
• anymore
• blastopore
• carnivore
• commodore
• dinosaur
• evermore
• furthermore
• guarantor
• herbivore

Kids Definition

civil war

noun

: a war between opposing groups of citizens of the same country or nation