combat fatigue

noun

|Updated on: 23 Jul 2018

Definition of combat fatigue

: post-traumatic stress disorder occurring under wartime conditions (such as combat) that cause intense stress : battle fatigue : shell shock

Nearly a half-million American soldiers were battle casualties during the fighting in Europe; by 1945 another 111,000 neuropsychiatric cases—then usually called combat fatigue—had been treated.
—Roger J. Spiller

The psychological strain he continues to endure has had many names over the years. In World War I, it was shell shock. In World War II, it was combat fatigue …
—Steven Lee Meyers

See combat fatigue defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of combat fatigue from the Web

The hospital called it combat fatigue, a common diagnosis for soldiers at the time.

— jessica stahl, Washington Post, "‘Letters From War’: 1943-1944 – Battles (full transcript)," 3 Jan. 2018
Voters are already showing political combat fatigue, as his 40% approval rating suggests.

— the editorial board, WSJ, "Jeff Flake’s Public Service," 25 Oct. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'combat fatigue.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of combat fatigue

1943

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

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Medical Dictionary

combat fatigue

noun com·bat fatigue \ ˈkäm-ˌbat- \

medical Definition of combat fatigue

: post-traumatic stress disorder occurring under wartime conditions (as combat) that cause intense stress — called also battle fatigue, shell shock, war neurosis