as in hawk
one who urges or attempts to cause a war
a government dominated by militarists
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as in militaristic
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of militarist
Jeff Kingston,
Time,
30 Nov. 2025
Lim Hui Jie,
CNBC,
31 May 2026
Right, in France, means pro-Catholic, pro-militarist.
—
David Frum,
The Atlantic,
31 Dec. 2025
Noun
At the same time, the barrage of vitriol unleashed by China castigating Takaichi as a warmongering militarist includes a reprehensible threat by the Chinese consul-general in Osaka about beheading Takaichi.
—
Jeff Kingston,
Time,
30 Nov. 2025
Adjective
Japan has neither of such weapons, and yet Japan is labeled neo-militarist.
—
Lim Hui Jie,
CNBC,
31 May 2026
Right, in France, means pro-Catholic, pro-militarist.
—
David Frum,
The Atlantic,
31 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for militarist
Noun
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Even a swooping hawk couldn’t resist perching on a tree overlooking the makeshift stage.
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Map your local predator threat, from raccoons and hawks to foxes, dogs and rats, and build defenses around what actually lives in your area.
Adjective
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The seemingly militaristic act of archery and peaceful meditation may seem diametrically opposed.
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In militaristic sync as they pound treadmills, down protein shakes and take steroid injections in the buttocks, a gymnasium full of lavishly buff (even 24-packed, to quote a droll visual gag) gay men blankly sing the praises of the body-beautiful lifestyle to a pounding EDM beat.
Noun
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The country is also home to several minority groups that have clashed with regime forces in the past, including Kurdish militants, Arab and Baloch separatists, among others.
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Since overthrowing the Assad dynasty and taking power in a lightning insurgency in December 2024, Syria’s new rulers have cracked down on militants from the extremist Islamic State group in an attempt to thwart attacks in and around the capital.
Adjective
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When authenticity becomes uncompromising, candor turns belligerent, consistency becomes rigid, or principled decision-making morphs into dogmatism, even the best intentions can backfire.
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Athens was a belligerent city-state that fell victim to its own aggressions.
Adjective
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The poem that precedes it, the Iliad, is a cruel and beautiful work, the ultimate story of war; the Odyssey has its warlike passages, but its central energies seem almost commonplace beside the merciless fury of Achilles.
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One of the world’s most cooperative mammals is also one of its most warlike.
Adjective
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At least, that’s what the bellicose rhetoric from Tehran suggests.
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At National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, a controversial but popular Russian studies program introduced last fall has nothing to do with the glories of imperial Russia and everything to do with the thinking and motivations of the bellicose power next door.
Cite this Entry
“Militarist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/militarist. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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