warfare

noun

war·​fare ˈwȯr-ˌfer 

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

Synonyms of warfare

• war
• strife
• discord
• conflict
• friction
• discordance
• discordancy
• schism
• dissent

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

Elbit Systems’ naval portfolio includes unmanned surface vessels, underwater systems, integrated command-and-control (C2) suites, electro-optical and sonar systems, communications and electronic warfare technologies. — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 23 Oct. 2026

Within decades, intertribal warfare and disease reduced it to about 500. — Jason Motlagh, Rolling Stone, 22 Oct. 2026

Ukraine has gotten very good at drone warfare, employing these little robots both in offensive and defensive capacities. — Mike Wall, Space.com, 22 Oct. 2026

Although the exact contours of NNSD are still emerging, the concept appears to be more escalatory than the hybrid warfare and deniable asymmetric campaigns that Russia is currently pursuing in Europe. — Dmitry Adamsky, Foreign Affairs, 21 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from werre, warre war + fare journey, passage — more at fare

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing warfare

• biological warfare
• chemical warfare
• cyber warfare
• germ warfare
• psychological warfare
• trench warfare

Rhymes for warfare

• abwehr
• affair
• affaire
• airfare
• altair
• armchair
• aware
• beware
• bugbear
• carfare
• childcare
• compare

Kids Definition

warfare

noun

war·​fare ˈwȯr-ˌfa(ə)r 

-ˌfe(ə)r

1

a

: military fighting between enemies : war

b

: activity undertaken by one country or group to weaken or destroy another

economic warfare

2

: a struggle between competitors : conflict

industrial warfare