belligerent

Intermediatezipf 3.04

Pronunciation

/bɪˈlɪdʒərənt/(bih-LIJ-uh-runt)

Part of speech

adjective / nounformal

Chinese

好斗的；交战的；好战的

Definition

Hostile and aggressive; ready to fight. (n) A nation or person engaged in war.

Word family

  • belligerence/bɪˈlɪdʒərəns/(n)好斗性
  • belligerently/bɪˈlɪdʒərəntli/(adv)好斗地

Collocations

  • belligerent attitude
  • belligerent tone
  • belligerent nation
  • increasingly belligerent

Examples

  1. 1.His belligerent attitude made negotiations impossible. (aggressive)
  2. 2.Both belligerents agreed to a temporary ceasefire. (noun: warring parties)

Synonyms

  • aggressive/əˈɡrɛsɪv/— hostile, ready to attack
  • combative/ˈkɒmbətɪv/— eager to fight
  • pugnacious/pʌɡˈneɪʃəs/— looking for a fight

Etymology

from Latin "belligerare" = to wage war — bellum (war) + gerere (to carry on)