1
: military operations between enemies : hostilities, war
also
: an activity undertaken by a political unit (such as a nation) to weaken or destroy another
economic warfare
2
: struggle between competing entities : conflict
see also biological warfare, chemical warfare, cyber warfare, germ warfare, trench warfare
Examples of warfare in a Sentence
that troubled household seems to be almost constantly in a state of warfare
companies engaged in constant warfare for dominance in the market for smart phones and tablets
Recent Examples on the Web
The projects included restoring two bread ovens at a bakery destroyed by Russian warfare, and purchasing a delivery van so that bread could reach more people.
—
Liz Rothaus Bertrand, Charlotte Observer, 7 Jan. 2026
Its utility, for autonomous command and control, has application across the seabed warfare domain and aligns with the UK Government’s vision for a ‘Hybrid Navy’ and the Royal Navy’s Long Term Capability Plan for MCM mission systems integration, according to the Thales.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 4 Jan. 2026
Ignoring the reality of modern warfare and the use of these forms of attack by enemy states would deprive law-abiding states of their legitimate right to self-defense.
—Sandeep Gopalan, Baltimore Sun, 4 Jan. 2026
These big and overarmed behemoths have been obsolete in warfare for many decades.
—Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 1 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for warfare
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Liz Rothaus Bertrand, Charlotte Observer, 7 Jan. 2026
Its utility, for autonomous command and control, has application across the seabed warfare domain and aligns with the UK Government’s vision for a ‘Hybrid Navy’ and the Royal Navy’s Long Term Capability Plan for MCM mission systems integration, according to the Thales.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 4 Jan. 2026
Ignoring the reality of modern warfare and the use of these forms of attack by enemy states would deprive law-abiding states of their legitimate right to self-defense.
—Sandeep Gopalan, Baltimore Sun, 4 Jan. 2026
These big and overarmed behemoths have been obsolete in warfare for many decades.
—Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 1 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for warfare
Cite this Entry
“Warfare.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/warfare. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
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warfare
noun
war·fare
ˈwȯr-ˌfa(ə)r 
-ˌfe(ə)r
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