warlike

adjective war·like \ ˈwȯr-ˌlīk \

Definition of warlike

1 obsolete :ready for war :equipped to fight

2 :fit for, disposed to, or fond of war :bellicose

a warlike people

3 :of, relating to, or useful in war

warlike preparations

4 :befitting or characteristic of war or a soldier

warlike cries

See warlike defined for English-language learners

See warlike defined for kids

Examples of warlike in a Sentence

The government has been criticized for its warlike attitude.
a seafarer's legend that the remote island was inhabited by a warlike and uncivilized tribe

Recent Examples of warlike from the Web

That reality is apparent in the standard warlike medical rhetoric, with doctors and patients alike speaking the language of soldiers.

— roc morin, The Atlantic, "Transplantees Find Catharsis in Holding Their Old Hearts," 22 Aug. 2017
The heavy rotation of videos extolling the virtues of life inside the caliphate in 2015 have moved to more warlike missives focused on terrorist attacks against the West, analysts say.

— joby warrick, Washington Post, "ISIS’s propaganda machine is thriving as the physical caliphate fades," 18 Aug. 2017
The unusual intramural conflict had the capital’s full attention even as the United States and North Korea traded warlike nuclear threats.

— carl hulse, New York Times, "Trump’s Twitter Fury at McConnell Risks Alienating a Key Ally," 10 Aug. 2017
The warlike rhetoric has yet to provoke India even as China rushes more troops to the region.

— The Christian Science Monitor, "Taking the high road in a Himalayan hostility," 28 July 2017
Since President Salvador Sánchez Cerén took office in 2014, the Salvadoran government has been on a warlike footing against MS-13 and the 18th Street gang.

— joshua partlow, Washington Post, "Trump wants to deport MS-13 gang members. El Salvador is dreading their return.," 24 May 2017
There is often the suspicion that warlike foreign policies are used as a distraction from problematic domestic politics.

— letter writers, Twin Cities, "Pedestrian safety. Or the lack thereof," 16 Apr. 2017
Gavelis and his colleagues recently published a paper describing the especially warlike adaptations of two particular genera of dinoflagellates, Polykrikos and Nematodinium.

— rachel brown, National Geographic, "‘Gatling Gun’ Plankton Reveals Violent Microbial World," 5 Apr. 2017
Such unity, loving and warlike, is the only defense against an Administration whose treatment of the vulnerable seems, like its whole agenda, to combine pernicious intentions with minimal planning.

— daniel wenger, The New Yorker, "The Loving, Warlike Unity of Gay Americans Against Trump," 6 Feb. 2017

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

First Known Use of warlike

15th century

warlike Synonyms

WARLIKE Defined for English Language Learners

warlike

adjective

Definition of warlike for English Language Learners

: liking or tending to fight in wars or to start wars
: showing or suggesting that a country, group, etc., is ready or eager to fight a war
: of, relating to, or useful in war