as in war
a a state or period of fighting between groups of people in the same country
a region that has had many civil wars
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Recent Examples of civil war
The Halo Trust, the organization Prince Harry is working with, has cleared 120,000 landmines in Angola that were left over from years of civil war.
—
Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 22 July 2025
Soon after, eight third-country deportees said by the US to have criminal records landed in South Sudan, a nation on the cusp of civil war.
—Nimi Princewill, CNN Money, 18 July 2025
That is an odd way to talk about a country that remains shattered after many years of civil war, and where the government—desperately short on money and qualified people—is struggling to rebuild a national army.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 18 July 2025
The two powers did find a new alignment in the Middle East when civil war broke out in Syria in 2011, with Tehran and Moscow aiding longtime Syrian President Bashar al-Assad against rebels and jihadis.
—Tom O'Connor, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for civil war
Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 22 July 2025
Soon after, eight third-country deportees said by the US to have criminal records landed in South Sudan, a nation on the cusp of civil war.
—Nimi Princewill, CNN Money, 18 July 2025
That is an odd way to talk about a country that remains shattered after many years of civil war, and where the government—desperately short on money and qualified people—is struggling to rebuild a national army.
—Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 18 July 2025
The two powers did find a new alignment in the Middle East when civil war broke out in Syria in 2011, with Tehran and Moscow aiding longtime Syrian President Bashar al-Assad against rebels and jihadis.
—Tom O'Connor, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for civil war
Recent Examples of Synonyms for civil war
Noun
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The cumulative effect of crises on top of crises — from war, to daily explosions suspected to be sabotage, to skyrocketing inflation, to water and power cuts — has many Iranians reeling.—
Leily Nikounazar Arash Khamooshi,
New York Times,
26 July 2025
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The team behind 20 Days In Mariupol documents the toll of the Russia-Ukraine war from a personal and devastating vantage point.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
25 July 2025
Noun
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The Arab-Iranian cold war has been a primary factor behind Israel’s increasing diplomatic coziness with its Arab neighbors, who have largely shelved generations of anger against the Jewish state in order to check Iranian power.—
Matt Bradley,
NBC news,
24 June 2025
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This ‘investment’ is all about the U.S. vs. China cold war, a theme driving the markets and pretty much everything else until further notice.—
Clem Chambers,
Forbes.com,
14 July 2025
Noun
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In the 20th century, that meant the Great Depression and two world wars, as well as violence against people of color and all sorts of oppression.—
Michael Schneider,
Variety,
31 July 2025
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Singer pointed to the massive casualties from world wars, numbers that the world has not seen in several of the most recent conflicts combined.—
Erin Mansfield,
USA Today,
30 June 2025
Noun
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These negotiations come at a particularly fraught moment, following a 12-day conflict triggered by Israeli attacks on Iranian targets.—
Amir Daftari
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 July 2025
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More than 130,000 people have been evacuated from conflict areas in Thailand, where the death toll rose to 15 as of early Friday, 14 of those civilians, according to the health ministry.—
Shoon Naing,
USA Today,
25 July 2025
Noun
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Many Russians will come to believe that Russia is fighting a holy war against the West and NATO, and that Western sanctions are designed to make ordinary Russians suffer.—
Maxim Mironov,
Foreign Affairs,
11 Mar. 2022
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In 1992, the government pressured Muslim clerics to declare a holy war against Nuba who opposed the regime.—
Nicolas Niarchos,
New Yorker,
19 May 2025
Noun
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In contrast, China has made targeted investments intended to give it an advantage in a quick, limited war, while keeping its overall defense spending relatively modest: Beijing’s defense spending has risen from five percent of U.S. levels in 1995 to 32 percent in 2017.—
Oriana Skylar Mastro,
Foreign Affairs,
20 May 2025
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And as always, there’s no guarantee that a limited war would stay limited.—
Joshua Keating,
Vox,
7 Dec. 2018
Cite this Entry
“Civil war.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/civil%20war. Accessed 7 Aug. 2025.
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