biological warfare

noun

: warfare involving the use of biological weapons

also : warfare involving the use of herbicides

Examples of biological warfare in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For many decades, so have humans: The Japanese conducted brutal biological warfare experiments in World War II; both the U.S. and the Soviet Union stockpiled toxins during the Cold War, with the latter’s program continuing even after signing the Biological Weapons Convention in 1972. —Bloomberg Opinion, Twin Cities, 19 Sep. 2024

Facebook posts from October and November 2023 promoted conspiracy theories about China, COVID-19 and biological warfare. —David Brennan, ABC News, 16 Sep. 2024

There’s no evidence the colorful pest was used as a form of biological warfare. —Byerik Stokstad, science.org, 27 June 2024

These features, along with the ability to disperse it as an aerosol, also make anthrax an ideal candidate for biological warfare. —Robert Hart, Forbes, 5 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1921, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

biological warfare

noun

: warfare involving the use of biological weapons

Medical Definition

biological warfare

noun

biological war·​fare -ˈwȯr-ˌfa(ə)r, -ˌfe(ə)r 

: warfare involving the use of biological weapons

also : warfare involving the use of herbicides