: a war between opposing groups of citizens of the same country
a country on the brink of (a) civil war
—often used in the capitalized names of specific wars
the Spanish Civil War(American/U.S.) Civil War monuments
Note: The American Civil War, fought 1861–1865 between the United States and 11 southern states that had seceded from it, is also commonly known as the U.S. Civil War, or especially in the U.S. as the War Between the States or simply the Civil War.
Example Sentences
a region that has had many civil wars The country is on the brink of civil war.
Recent Examples on the WebRadio and television accounts of the murder of Idir are matched by news of other uprisings throughout France; by the end of the movie, the country is said to be in a state of civil war. Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 9 Sep. 2022 The movement first emerged in 1982 as a response to Israel's invasion of Beirut during Lebanon's bloody civil war. Adam Pourahmadi, CNN, 26 Aug. 2022 Ortega served as president in the 1980s during a bloody civil war that pitted Sandinista fighters against U.S.-backed Contra rebels. Kate Linthicum, Anchorage Daily News, 15 Aug. 2022 Ortega served as president in the 1980s during a bloody civil war that pitted Sandinista fighters against U.S.-backed Contra rebels.Los Angeles Times, 11 Aug. 2022 Seventy-three-year-old Rajapakse, a former lieutenant-colonel in the Sri Lankan army, is the second of the four Rajapakse brothers who have wielded immense political power over Sri Lanka since the bloody civil war ended in 2009. Harish Pullanoor, Quartz, 12 July 2022 But China's leader, Xi Jinping, has taken a more aggressive stance than his predecessors, who long vowed to bring the island under their control, viewing the issue as the unfinished business of a bloody civil war waged more than 70 years ago. Compiled Democrat-gazette Staff From Wire Reports, Arkansas Online, 24 May 2022 The song is about Julius Caesar’s decision to take his troops across the Rubicon River in 49 BC, an event that kicked off a bloody civil war. Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 4 Mar. 2022 Specifically, the show will focus on events leading up to and surrounding the Dance of the Dragons, which is the name the poets of Westeros gave to the bloody civil war that broke out among the Targaryens over succession of the Iron Throne. Nick Romano, EW.com, 18 Feb. 2022 See More