psychological warfare

noun

: things that are done to make someone (such as an enemy or opponent) become less confident or to feel hopeless, afraid, etc.
The army used radio broadcasts into enemy territory as a form of psychological warfare.

Examples of psychological warfare in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The regime now frames the protests as the product of foreign psychological warfare, even as everyday Iranians struggle to survive. Washington Post, 5 Jan. 2026 Meanwhile, officials in the Trump administration on Saturday discussed the possibility of dropping leaflets on Venezuela's capital city of Caracas as a kind of psychological warfare to pressure Maduro, multiple U.S. officials familiar with the talks told CBS News. Faris Tanyos, CBS News, 24 Nov. 2025 Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried engage in some psychological warfare. Brian Truitt, USA Today, 4 Nov. 2025 Indeed, the greatness of Fendrix’s score comes largely in its scale, which gives the film’s mostly intimate story of three people engaged in psychological warfare within the confines of a basement an epic grandeur. Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 29 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for psychological warfare

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Psychological warfare.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/psychological%20warfare. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!