war cry
noun
plural war cries
1
: a shouted word, phrase, or sound used by a body of fighters before or in battle : battle cry
Yelling and shouting fearsome war cries, the attackers leaped from the ditch, peppering the ramparts with a hail of arrows, spears and stones.—
Brian Jaques
Brian Jaques2
: a slogan, catchphrase, or motto that is used especially to rally people to a cause or to rouse people to action : rallying cry
Certainly, the NIMBY war cry is being heard in more than my town. The 2006 Saint Index, … which analyzes attitudes toward real estate development, found that twice as many Americans actively oppose development as support it.—Katherine Field
Katherine FieldExamples of war cry in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In looking back on her past roles, actress Lucy Lawless, who starred in the fantasy series for nearly six years starting in 1995, revisited that war cry during her appearance on PeopleTV’s Couch Surfing.
—Dominic Corry, EW.com, 5 Aug. 2021
Since the right began to use it as a war cry, many progressives have argued that the word is empty, merely a way to attack people of color, feminists, and members of LGBTQ communities without being directly offensive.
—Time, 27 June 2023
The single opens with vocals echoing the Warrior Princess’ famous war cry and melts into a rush of bass and techno as the Palestian singer’s voice commands the track.
—Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 2 Feb. 2023
Selma is a play on the word selva, which in Portugues translates to jungle, it is also used by the Brazilian military as a war cry.
—Sarah Rumpf, Fox News, 10 Jan. 2023
Protesters in cities throughout China were actually chanting Patrick Henry's revolutionary war cry from 1775 this week, as tens of thousands poured into the streets in defiance of the authoritarian regime in Beijing.
—William Falk, The Week, 3 Dec. 2022
And at President Biden’s address to the conference, four protesters interrupted his speech, letting out a war cry and holding up a banner calling on the president to declare a climate emergency.
—WIRED, 16 Nov. 2022
Clayton, a mountain of an individual, acquits himself well with the war cry.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 17 Nov. 2021
One arresting voice comes through like a war cry, all ancient, melismatic syllables in unsettled rhythms.
—New York Times, 22 Oct. 2021
Dominic Corry, EW.com, 5 Aug. 2021
Since the right began to use it as a war cry, many progressives have argued that the word is empty, merely a way to attack people of color, feminists, and members of LGBTQ communities without being directly offensive.
—Time, 27 June 2023
The single opens with vocals echoing the Warrior Princess’ famous war cry and melts into a rush of bass and techno as the Palestian singer’s voice commands the track.
—Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 2 Feb. 2023
Selma is a play on the word selva, which in Portugues translates to jungle, it is also used by the Brazilian military as a war cry.
—Sarah Rumpf, Fox News, 10 Jan. 2023
Protesters in cities throughout China were actually chanting Patrick Henry's revolutionary war cry from 1775 this week, as tens of thousands poured into the streets in defiance of the authoritarian regime in Beijing.
—William Falk, The Week, 3 Dec. 2022
And at President Biden’s address to the conference, four protesters interrupted his speech, letting out a war cry and holding up a banner calling on the president to declare a climate emergency.
—WIRED, 16 Nov. 2022
Clayton, a mountain of an individual, acquits himself well with the war cry.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 17 Nov. 2021
One arresting voice comes through like a war cry, all ancient, melismatic syllables in unsettled rhythms.
—New York Times, 22 Oct. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'war cry.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“War cry.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/war%20cry. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
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