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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
Phew, no world war, and lucky McGee got to wear a comfy hoodie in the office for the crisis.
—Sara Netzley, EW.com, 5 Nov. 2024
Because, choosing between some promises and the possibility of starting a third world war—the choice is still quite obvious.
—Marco Rubio, Newsweek, 2 Nov. 2024
Aerospace took a world war and almost 40 years to become a significant industry.
—Jon Younger, Forbes, 20 Sep. 2024
Katie Hafner: For women in the U.K. between the two world wars, studying chemistry was especially hard.
—Katie Hafner, Scientific American, 24 Oct. 2024
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Word History
First Known Use
1848, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near world war
Cite this Entry
“World war.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/world%20war. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.
Kids Definition
world war
noun
: a war involving all or most of the chief nations of the world
especially, capitalized both Ws
: either of two such wars of the 20th century
More from Merriam-Webster on world war
Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for world war
Britannica English: Translation of world war for Arabic Speakers
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