world war
noun
: a war engaged in by all or most of the principal nations of the world
especially,
World War
: either of two such wars of the first half of the 20th century
Examples of world war in a Sentence
He fought in both World Wars.
The nations were prepared for world war.
Recent Examples on the Web
As pundit Mehdi Hasan had reminded us moments earlier, studies show that more Palestinian journalists have been killed during this conflict than in Vietnam, Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, and both world wars combined.
—
Shaad D’souza, Pitchfork, 18 Sep. 2025
Two world wars attest to the need for a healthy, democratic Europe.
—Steve Forbes, Forbes.com, 12 Sep. 2025
Maybe not something drastic like a world war, slavery or the Holocaust, but there’s always shady s–t going on.
—Carl Lamarre, Billboard, 3 Sep. 2025
By the late 1930s, the United States was unprepared for the scale of airpower a world war would demand.
—Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 26 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for world war
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Shaad D’souza, Pitchfork, 18 Sep. 2025
Two world wars attest to the need for a healthy, democratic Europe.
—Steve Forbes, Forbes.com, 12 Sep. 2025
Maybe not something drastic like a world war, slavery or the Holocaust, but there’s always shady s–t going on.
—Carl Lamarre, Billboard, 3 Sep. 2025
By the late 1930s, the United States was unprepared for the scale of airpower a world war would demand.
—Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 26 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for world war
Cite this Entry
“World war.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/world%20war. Accessed 30 Sep. 2025.
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