war of words
15
6.2
- noun
:
guerra de palabras
- Clint Eastwood and Spike Lee have been involved in a war of words.
So I got into some war of words with Chelsea Handler.
- So I got into some war of words with Chelsea Handler.
- So again, this is the war of words and how it ruins people's lives.
- So why are they having this public war of words?
- And again, what happens over time is if people tend to, as Jordan Peterson said, if people can't work out there a war of words, there's a war of sorts.
Examples
-
The war of words, thanks to the Blogosphere, is alive and well.
Blog text (23) -
Whether dismissed as propaganda and lies or embraced as truth, this war of words is probably far more dangerous to al-Qa'ida's foes than is widely realized.
Academic text (2005) -
The best option appears to focus on a war of words.
Academic text (1997) -
The war of words can become the death of the land, and so many people play into it.
Blog text (21) -
The remainder of the season continued pretty much as a war of words in the press.
Academic text (1994) -
So again, this is the war of words and how it ruins people's lives.
-
This is mostly a war of words and symbolism.
-
Pakistan and others would be better off not to interfere in any conflict or war of words between Israel and Iran.
Blog text (26) -
All the pamphleteers in London seemed to be engaged in a war of words, but the printers and booksellers were the only winners, and Alice profited as much as any.
Fiction book (1993) -
The politicians engaged in a war of words during the live debate, exchanging heated arguments.
Synonyms
465
4.9
A long public disagreement that causes strong arguments between people
294
4.5
A situation when people or groups meet in direct conflict, often angrily
119
3.5
A short angry conversation between two people
118
5.3
A heated back-and-forth argument between people with different views
105
3.2
A short conflict between people or groups
74
6.0
A noisy argument between people
61
2.0
An angry argument between people who are usually friendly
52
6.8
A noisy argument between people often in public
41
5.2
An angry argument with someone
34
6.5
A strong disagreement between people or groups
16
6.7
A long heated argument about a specific issue
12
3.5
An argument with strong feelings and different opinions
11
7.0
A close, fierce fight between fighter planes or in a contest
7
3.8
A noisy argument in which people try to shout louder than each other
7
3.5
A strong angry disagreement between people with loud voices
5
3.7
An argument where people speak loudly and with strong feelings
2
7.4
A noisy argument that lasts a long time
2
9.1
A noisy public fight or argument that causes trouble
1
7.5
A public argument where people attack each other's ideas
1
4.2
A quick back-and-forth argument between people to test ideas
1
6.2
A short angry argument between people
1
9.9
A noisy argument between people about a small issue
1
8.6
A noisy argument between people, often in public
A bitter, angry argument that causes hard feelings
A very angry, petty argument with personal insults
Antonyms
How Heated
15
6.2
- Offensive
617
2.3
- Formal
∞
2.0
∞
1.4
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a prolonged exchange of verbal attacks' is directly derivable from combining 'war' (a conflict or struggle, often used figuratively) with 'words' (utterances), so the phrase transparently denotes a conflict conducted through speech. This metaphorical use of 'war' in non-physical domains is common across languages and in English, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will very likely infer the intended sense.
Etymology
War of words uses the image of a war where the weapons are words. Imagine two people attacking each other with harsh speech or public writing, and that's why it means 'a long, bitter fight using words'.