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 ofworld war in a Sentence
He fought in bothWorld Wars. The nations were prepared forworld war.
Recent Examples on the WebPhilip Noel-Baker’s legacy Eight more Olympics had taken place since Noel-Baker won his silver medal, the games interrupted by yet anotherworld war.—
Amy Crawford,Popular Science, 29 Jan. 2026Over the past 150 years, these companies survived industrial upheaval,world wars, and massive technological shifts by repeatedly reinventing themselves.—Kaif Shaikh,Interesting Engineering, 21 Jan. 2026And it's worked to preventworld wars.—ABC News, 18 Jan. 2026Trump’s stance in Venezuela is consistent with a geopolitics based on raw power and spheres of influence—the very sort that produced twoworld wars in the 20th century.—Garry Kasparov,The Atlantic, 10 Jan. 2026See All Example Sentences forworld war
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.
Amy Crawford,Popular Science, 29 Jan. 2026Over the past 150 years, these companies survived industrial upheaval,world wars, and massive technological shifts by repeatedly reinventing themselves.—Kaif Shaikh,Interesting Engineering, 21 Jan. 2026And it's worked to preventworld wars.—ABC News, 18 Jan. 2026Trump’s stance in Venezuela is consistent with a geopolitics based on raw power and spheres of influence—the very sort that produced twoworld wars in the 20th century.—Garry Kasparov,The Atlantic, 10 Jan. 2026See All Example Sentences forworld warWord History
First Known Use
1848, in the meaning definedabove
Rhymes forworld war
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Cite this Entry
“World war.”Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/world%20war. Accessed 18 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids 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
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Thesaurus:All synonyms and antonyms forworld war
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