Have you read the news and found war and military vocabulary you don’t understand and this has made it difficult for you to grasp the meaning of these texts? Here’s a list of useful terms to help you understand these articles better. Also, if you want to learn strategies to learn many words very quickly, read our awesome article How to Improve Your Vocabulary in English.
War and military vocabulary
| Abandon | cease to support or look after (someone); desert; give up completely (a course of action, a practice, or a way of thinking) |
| Advance | move forward in a purposeful way; make or cause to make progress |
| Aircraft | an airplane, helicopter, or other machine capable of flight |
| Air Force | the branch of a nation’s armed services that conducts military operations in the air |
| Alliance | a union or association formed for mutual benefit, especially between countries or organizations |
| Ally | a state formally cooperating with another for a military or other purpose |
| Ambush | a surprise attack by people lying in wait in a concealed position; make a surprise attack on (someone) from a concealed position |
| Ammunition | a supply or quantity of bullets and shells |
| Area | a region or part of a town, a country, or the world |
| Armor | the metal coverings formerly worn by soldiers or warriors to protect the body in battle |
| Army | an organized military force equipped for fighting on land |
| Arsenal | a collection of weapons and military equipment stored by a country, person, or group |
| Artillery | large-caliber guns used in warfare on land |
| Assassin | a murderer of an important person in a surprise attack for political or religious reasons |
| Assault | make a physical attack on |
| Atrocity | an extremely wicked or cruel act, typically one involving physical violence or injury |
| Attack | take aggressive action against (a place or enemy forces) with weapons or armed force, typically in a battle or war |
| Barricade | an improvised barrier erected across a street or other thoroughfare to prevent or delay the movement of opposing forces |
| Battle | a sustained fight between large organized armed forces |
| Battleship | a heavy warship of a type built chiefly in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with extensive armor and large-caliber guns |
| Besiege | surround (a place) with armed forces in order to capture it or force its surrender; lay siege to |
| Blood | the red liquid that circulates in the arteries and veins of humans and other vertebrate animals, carrying oxygen to and carbon dioxide from the tissues of the body |
| Bomb | a container filled with explosive, incendiary material, smoke, gas, or other destructive substance, designed to explode on impact or when detonated by a time mechanism, remote-control device, or lit fuse |
| Bombardment | a continuous attack with bombs, shells, or other missiles |
| Brutality | savage physical violence; great cruelty |
| Building | a structure with a roof and walls, such as a house, school, store, or factory |
| Bulletproof | designed to resist the penetration of bullets |
| Bunker | a reinforced underground shelter, typically for use in wartime |
| Camouflage | hide or disguise the presence of (a person, animal, or object) by means of camouflage; the disguising of military personnel, equipment, and installations by painting or covering them to make them blend in with their surroundings |
| Cannon | a large, heavy piece of artillery, typically mounted on wheels, formerly used in warfare |
| Captain | the person in command of a ship |
| Captive | a person who has been taken prisoner or an animal that has been confined |
| Capture | take into one’s possession or control by force |
| Casualty | a person killed or injured in a war or accident |
| Cavalry | (in the past) soldiers who fought on horseback; modern soldiers who fight in armored vehicles |
| Ceasefire | a temporary suspension of fighting, typically one during which peace talks take place; a truce |
| Civil | relating to ordinary citizens and their concerns, as distinct from military or ecclesiastical matters |
| Civilian | a person not in the armed services or the police force |
| Code | a system of words, letters, figures, or other symbols substituted for other words, letters, etc., especially for the purposes of secrecy |
| Coercion | the practice of persuading someone to do something by using force or threats |
| Colonel | an army officer of high rank, in particular (in the US Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps) an officer above a lieutenant colonel and below a brigadier general |
| Combat | fighting between armed forces |
| Combative | ready or eager to fight; pugnacious |
| Commemorate | recall and show respect for (someone or something) |
| Compassion | sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others |
| Confinement | the action of confining or state of being confined |
| Conflict | a serious disagreement or argument, typically a protracted one |
| Convalescent | (of a person) recovering from an illness or operation |
| Convoy | a group of ships or vehicles traveling together, typically accompanied by armed troops, warships, or other vehicles for protection |
| Corpse | a dead body, especially of a human being rather than an animal |
| Coup (d’État) | a sudden, violent, and illegal seizure of power from a government |
| Crime | an action or omission that constitutes an offense that may be prosecuted by the state and is punishable by law |
| Danger | the possibility of suffering harm or injury |
| Defend | resist an attack made on (someone or something); protect from harm or danger |
| Demonstration | the action or process of showing the existence or truth of something by giving proof or evidence |
| Detain | keep (someone) from proceeding; hold back |
| Detonate | explode or cause to explode |
| Disaster | a sudden event, such as an accident or a natural catastrophe, that causes great damage or loss of life |
| Dominate | have a commanding influence on; exercise control over |
| Drama | a play for theater, radio, or television |
| Duty | a moral or legal obligation; a responsibility |
| Enemy | a person who is actively opposed or hostile to someone or something |
| Espionage | the practice of spying or of using spies, typically by governments to obtain political and military information |
| Evade | escape or avoid, especially by cleverness or trickery |
| Evasion | the action of evading something |
| Explode | burst or shatter violently and noisily as a result of rapid combustion, decomposition, excessive internal pressure, or other process, typically scattering fragments widely |
| Explosion | a violent and destructive shattering or blowing apart of something, as is caused by a bomb |
| Fascist | a political philosophy, movement, or regime (such as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition |
| Flee | run away from a place or situation of danger |
| Fleet | a group of ships sailing together, engaged in the same activity, or under the same ownership |
| Grenade | a small bomb thrown by hand or launched mechanically |
| Guerilla | a member of a small independent group taking part in irregular fighting, typically against larger regular forces |
| Gun | a weapon incorporating a metal tube from which bullets, shells, or other missiles are propelled by explosive force, typically making a characteristic loud, sharp noise |
| Helmet | a hard or padded protective hat, various types of which are worn by soldiers, police officers, firefighters, motorcyclists, athletes, and others |
| Hostile | unfriendly; antagonistic |
| Humanity | the human race; human beings collectively |
| Incursion | an invasion or attack, especially a sudden or brief one |
| Infantry | soldiers marching or fighting on foot; foot soldiers collectively |
| Infrastructure | the basic physical and organizational structures and facilities (e.g. buildings, roads, power supplies) needed for the operation of a society or enterprise |
| Insurgent | a rebel or revolutionary |
| Invade | (of an armed force or its commander) enter (a country or region) so as to subjugate or occupy it |
| Invasion | an instance of invading a country or region with an armed force |
| Investigation | the action of investigating something or someone; formal or systematic examination or research |
| Kill | cause the death of (a person, animal, or other living thing) |
| Land | the part of the earth’s surface that is not covered by water, as opposed to the sea or the air |
| Logistics | the detailed coordination of a complex operation involving many people, facilities, or supplies |
| Machine gun | an automatic gun that fires bullets in rapid succession for as long as the trigger is pressed |
| Maneuver | a movement or series of moves requiring skill and care; a large-scale military exercise of troops, warships, and other forces |
| Marine | of, found in, or produced by the sea |
| Maritime | connected with the sea, especially in relation to seafaring commercial or military activity |
| Massacre | an indiscriminate and brutal slaughter of people |
| Memorial | something, especially a structure, established to remind people of a person or event |
| Missile | an object which is forcibly propelled at a target, either by hand or from a mechanical weapon |
| Mortar | a short smoothbore gun for firing shells (technically called bombs) at high angles |
| Murder | the unlawful premeditated killing of one human being by another |
| Nationalist | a person who strongly identifies with their own nation and vigorously supports its interests, especially to the exclusion or detriment of the interests of other nations |
| Navy | the branch of a nation’s armed services that conducts military operations at sea |
| Neutral | not helping or supporting either side in a conflict, disagreement, etc.; impartial |
| Neutrality | the state of not supporting or helping either side in a conflict, disagreement, etc.; impartiality |
| Nuclear | relating to the nucleus of an atom |
| Offense | a breach of a law or rule; an illegal act |
| Offensive | causing someone to feel deeply hurt, upset, or angry; an attacking military campaign |
| Oil | a viscous liquid derived from petroleum, especially for use as a fuel or lubricant |
| Opponent | someone who competes against or fights another in a contest, game, or argument; a rival or adversary |
| Overthrow | remove forcibly from power |
| Pacific | peaceful in character or intent |
| Petrol | a light fuel oil that is obtained by distilling petroleum and used in internal combustion engines; gasoline |
| Pistol | a small firearm designed to be held in one hand |
| Prison | a building in which people are legally held as a punishment for a crime they have committed or while awaiting trial |
| Prisoner | a person legally held in prison as a punishment for crimes they have committed or while awaiting trial |
| Projectile | a missile designed to be fired from a rocket or gun |
| Propaganda | information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view |
| Rebel | a person who rises in opposition or armed resistance against an established government or ruler |
| Rebellion | an act of violent or open resistance to an established government or ruler |
| Refugee | a person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster |
| Regime | a government, especially an authoritarian one |
| Region | an area or division, especially part of a country or the world having definable characteristics but not always fixed boundaries |
| Reinforcement | the action or process of reinforcing or strengthening; extra personnel sent to increase the strength of an army or similar force |
| Repel | drive or force (an attack or attacker) back or away |
| Retaliation | the action of returning a military attack; counterattack; the action of harming someone because they have harmed oneself; revenge |
| Revolution | a forcible overthrow of a government or social order, in favor of a new system |
| Revolutionary | involving or causing a complete or dramatic change; engaged in or promoting political revolution |
| Ricochet | (of a bullet, shell, or other projectile) rebound one or more times off a surface |
| Rifle | a gun, especially one fired from shoulder level, having a long spirally grooved barrel intended to make a bullet spin and thereby have greater accuracy over a long distance |
| Rocket | a cylindrical projectile that can be propelled to a great height or distance by the combustion of its contents, used typically as a firework or signal |
| Sabotage | deliberately destroy, damage, or obstruct (something), especially for political or military advantage |
| Sacrifice | an act of slaughtering an animal or person or surrendering a possession as an offering to God or to a divine or supernatural figure |
| Sanction | a threatened penalty for disobeying a law or rule |
| Scare | cause great fear or nervousness in; frighten |
| Scared | fearful; frightened |
| Sergeant | a noncommissioned officer in the armed forces, in particular (in the US Army or Marine Corps) an NCO ranking above corporal and below staff sergeant, or (in the US Air Force) an NCO ranking above airman and below staff sergeant |
| Shield | a broad piece of metal or another suitable material, held by straps or a handle attached on one side, used as a protection against blows or missiles |
| Shoot | kill or wound (a person or animal) with a bullet or arrow |
| Siege | a military operation in which enemy forces surround a town or building, cutting off essential supplies, with the aim of compelling the surrender of those inside |
| Signal | a gesture, action, or sound that is used to convey information or instructions, typically by prearrangement between the parties concerned |
| Soldier | a person who serves in an army |
| Spear | a weapon with a long shaft and a pointed tip, typically of metal, used for thrusting or throwing |
| Spy | a person who secretly collects and reports information on the activities, movements, and plans of an enemy or competitor; work for a government or other organization by secretly collecting information about enemies or competitors |
| Stature | a person’s natural height; importance or reputation gained by ability or achievement |
| Strategic | relating to the identification of long-term or overall aims and interests and the means of achieving them |
| Strategy | a plan of action or policy designed to achieve a major or overall aim |
| Struggle | make forceful or violent efforts to get free of restraint or constriction; a forceful or violent effort to get free of restraint or resist attack |
| Submarine | a warship with a streamlined hull designed to operate completely submerged in the sea for long periods, equipped with a periscope and typically armed with torpedoes or missiles |
| Subordinate | lower in rank or position; a person under the authority or control of another within an organization; treat or regard as of lesser importance than something else |
| Suffer | experience or be subjected to (something bad or unpleasant) |
| Surrender | cease resistance to an enemy or opponent and submit to their authority |
| Survive | continue to live or exist, especially in spite of danger or hardship |
| Suspect | have an idea or impression of the existence, presence, or truth of (something) without certain proof; a person thought to be guilty of a crime or offense; not to be relied on or trusted; possibly dangerous or false |
| Sword | a weapon with a long metal blade and a hilt with a hand guard, used for thrusting or striking and now typically worn as part of ceremonial dress |
| Tactic | an action or strategy carefully planned to achieve a specific end |
| Take control | to gain, assume, or exercise the ability or authority to manage, direct, or influence something |
| Tank | a heavy armored fighting vehicle carrying guns and moving on a continuous articulated metal track |
| Territory | an area of land under the jurisdiction of a ruler or state |
| Trajectory | the path followed by a projectile flying or an object moving under the action of given forces |
| Transport | take or carry (people or goods) from one place to another by means of a vehicle, aircraft, or ship; a system or means of conveying people or goods from place to place by means of a vehicle, aircraft, or ship |
| Treacherous | guilty of or involving betrayal or deception; (of ground, water, conditions, etc.) hazardous because of presenting hidden or unpredictable dangers |
| Troop | soldiers or armed forces; a group of soldiers, especially a cavalry unit commanded by a captain, or an airborne unit |
| Truce | an agreement between enemies or opponents to stop fighting or arguing for a certain time |
| Uniform | the distinctive clothing worn by members of the same organization or body or by children attending certain schools |
| Uprising | an act of resistance or rebellion; a revolt |
| Vehicle | a thing used for transporting people or goods, especially on land, such as a car, truck, or cart |
| Veteran | a person who has had long experience in a particular field; a person who has served in the military |
| Victory | an act of defeating an enemy or opponent in a battle, game, or other competition |
| Violence | behavior involving physical force intended to hurt, damage, or kill someone or something |
| Volunteer | a person who freely offers to take part in an enterprise or undertake a task; freely offer to do something |
| War | a state of armed conflict between different nations or states or different groups within a nation or state |
| Warfare | engagement in or the activities involved in war or conflict |
| Weapon | a thing designed or used for inflicting bodily harm or physical damage |
| Withdraw | remove or take away (something) from a particular place or position; leave or cause to leave a place or situation |
| Withdrawal | the action of withdrawing something |
| Zone | an area or stretch of land having a particular characteristic, purpose, or use, or subject to particular restrictions |
