limited war
1
7.1
- noun
- /ˈlɪmɪtɪd wɔr/
- Specialized
:
guerra limitada
- In a limited war, the goals are often to achieve specific political objectives rather than total victory over the enemy.
- limited war theory
- fight a limited war
Examples
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The development of the theory of limited war was a broadly based, interdisciplinary effort that was the subject of much heated debate.
Academic text (1992) -
The U.S. strategy in Vietnam was often criticized as a limited war due to its restricted objectives and resources.
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Others, therefore, were to develop the concepts that were to become the basis of limited war theory.
Academic text (1992) -
The Korean experience was constantly used as an example of what a limited war might be like.
Academic text (1992) -
The article closes with a discussion of the implications of the theory of limited war for today.
Academic text (1992) -
The discussions of limited war during this explosion of creative thought focused on the strategic uses of power.
Academic text (1992) -
Most writers at the time felt that the solution lay in the creation of a capability to fight limited wars.
Academic text (1992) -
More recent limited wars yielded other lessons.
Academic text (1992) -
Although America had dabbled in the realm of limited war theory, it had not done so to any great depth.
Academic text (1992) -
The support extended by President Bill Clinton to India in its limited war with Pakistan in 1999 removed the perception that Washington would inevitably align with Islamabad in regional conflicts.
Academic text (2006)
How Limited
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a war with restricted aims or resources' is directly and transparently built from 'limited' (confined in scope) modifying 'war' (armed conflict). This straightforward adjective+noun composition is cross-linguistically common and should be immediately understandable to a B1 learner who knows both constituent words.
Etymology
The phrase limited war comes from the image of drawing a line on a map around a fight: the word limited means set limits and war means fighting, so leaders imagine a conflict kept inside that line. That's why it means 'a war with restricted aims and limited resources'.