armistice

noun

ar·​mi·​stice ˈär-mə-stəs 

: temporary stopping of open acts of warfare by agreement between the opponents : truce

Did you know?

Armistice descends from Latin sistere, meaning "to come to a stand" or "to cause to stand or stop," combined with arma, meaning "weapons." An armistice, therefore, is literally a cessation of arms. Armistice Day is the name that was given to the holiday celebrated in the United States on November 11 before it was renamed Veterans Day by Congress in 1954. The original name refers to the agreement between the Allied Powers and Germany to end hostilities that constituted the First World War—an agreement designated to take effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

Synonyms

• cease-fire
• truce

Examples of armistice in a Sentence

both sides in the conflict agreed to an armistice during the solemn holy days

Recent Examples on the Web

North and South Korea have been separated since the Korean War ended in 1953 with an armistice agreement. —Gawon Bae, CNN, 15 Oct. 2024

The two Koreas are still technically at war after their 1950-53 war ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty. —Reuters, NBC News, 15 Oct. 2024

Military engagements between North Korea and South Korea ended in 1953 with the signing of an armistice, but a lack of a treaty ending the Korean War means the two nations remain in armed conflict on paper. —Timothy Nerozzi, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 14 Oct. 2024

North and South Korea have been cut off from each other since the end of the Korean War in 1953, which concluded with an armistice not a peace treaty, leaving the two sides still technically at war. —Yoonjung Seo, CNN, 4 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin armistitium, from Latin arma "implements of war, weapons" + -stit-, -stes (going back to *-sta-t-s, root noun derivative from Indo-European *steh₂- the base of Latin sistere "to make stand, halt, bring to a standstill," stāre "to stand") + -ium, suffix of compounded nouns — more at arm entry 3, stand entry 1

Note: The Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources records armistitium from medieval Scottish documents preserved in England (Rotuli Scotiae in Turri Londensi et in Domo Capitulari Westmonasteriensi asservati, vol. 1, London, 1814, p. 335). However, the word occurs only in the text of a heading summarizing the contents of a letter written in April, 1335. These headings were presumably composed when the documents were collected for publication and do not reflect medieval usage of armistitium. Printed records of the word are in abundance only after 1610, when it appears in the dedicatory preface to Biblical commentaries by the French Jesuit Nicolaus Serarius (In sacros divinorum bibliorum libros, Tobiam, Iudith, Esther et Machabaeos commentarius, Mainz, 1610), though there is no reason to believe Serarius coined it. The model for the coinage may have been Latin solstitium solstice.

First Known Use

1677, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

armistice

noun

ar·​mi·​stice ˈär-mə-stəs 

: a pause in fighting brought about by agreement between the two sides