cold war

noun

Definition of cold warnext
as in world war

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of cold war Per a source, that cold war continued through the offseason. — Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 7 Apr. 2026 And that means that if the hot war ends, but Iran ends up in another cold war, that would be as fatal to the regime as the continuation of the hot war. — Isaac Chotiner, New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2026 The theory posited that wars in the post-cold war era would be fought along religious divides, bringing the West and the Islamic states such as Iran to clash. — Debidatta A. Mahapatra, The Orlando Sentinel, 7 Mar. 2026 Swedish pop star Zara Larsson is apparently locked in a cold war with one user who keeps swapping out the photo on her page. — Walden Green, Pitchfork, 20 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for cold war
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cold war
  1. world war
  2. civil war
  3. holy war
  4. limited war
Noun
  • Louis' boxing matches with Schmeling were viewed as pivotal international events in the context of the brewing world war with Nazi Germany.
    — Tommy McArdle, PEOPLE, 19 June 2026
  • Horkheimer, amid the wreckage of world war, lost faith in progress; his dialectic negated one construct after another.
    — Alex Ross, New Yorker, 15 June 2026
Definition of world war
Noun
  • Yemen, one of the world’s poorest countries, is still recovering from the civil war that plunged parts of the nation into famine.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 14 July 2026
  • Love blooms between Saeed and Nadia as civil war breaks out in their unnamed city.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 July 2026
Definition of civil war
Noun
  • Commentary and opinions Bass clears the first hurdle, but if Pratt holds off Raman, the mayoral race could be a holy war, writes columnist Steve Lopez.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 4 June 2026
  • Khomeini demonized the United States and Soviet Union as the Iran-Iraq holy war raged during much of his tenure.
    — USA Today, USA Today, 19 May 2026
Definition of holy war
Noun
  • In this scenario, which may already be coming to fruition, the meager hope is that the conflict transforms into simply a more limited war.
    — Daniel Byman, Foreign Affairs, 5 Apr. 2024
  • Many scholars panned the book, believing its 34-year-old author had overestimated the nation’s ability to keep limited war limited.
    — David E. Sanger, New York Times, 30 Nov. 2023
Definition of limited war

Browse Nearby Words

cold turkey
cold war
cold wars
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Cold war.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cold%20war. Accessed 20 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on cold war

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about cold war

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!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of raffish

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
child-detective
Spot the Misspelled Word July 2026 Those little red underlines can't help you now...
See All