belligerents
Nations at war
Belligerents are parties engaged in war or armed conflict—nations, factions, or groups actively fighting.
The term carries legal weight in international law, where belligerent status confers certain rights and obligations: The treaty recognized both sides as belligerents.
More loosely, belligerents are simply people behaving aggressively or combatively: The belligerents at the bar were escorted out.
Military personnel who fight
- troopsMilitary personnel collectively
- warriorsPeople engaged in battle
- fightersThose who engage physically
- militantsAggressive advocates for causes
adversaries · enemies · foes · opponents · infantry · guerrillas · mercenaries · insurgents
Armed struggle between groups
- warfareArmed conflict between groups
- battleArmed military engagement
- combatArmed hostile engagement
- hostilitiesActive armed fighting
engagement · skirmish · confrontation · clash · fighting · siege · invasion · offensive
Active, bitter hostility
- enmityBitter, lasting ill will
- antagonismActive opposition or hostility
- hatredIntense hostile aversion
- aggressionHostile or attacking behavior
ill-will · acrimony · hostility · antipathy · resentment · malice · strife · tension
Formal discussion seeking agreement
- treatiesFormal agreements between states
- sanctionsPunitive international restrictions
- accordsMutual agreements reached
- alliancesFormal unions for cooperation
neutrality · mediation · arbitration · reparations · armistice · ceasefire · sovereignty · declaration
soldiers
Military personnel who fight
- troopsMilitary personnel collectively
- warriorsPeople engaged in battle
- fightersThose who engage physically
militants · adversaries · enemies · foes · opponents · infantry · guerrillas · mercenaries · insurgents · partisans
war
Armed struggle between groups
hostilities · engagement · skirmish · confrontation · clash · fighting · siege · invasion · offensive · incursion
animosity
Active, bitter hostility
- enmityBitter, lasting ill will
- antagonismActive opposition or hostility
- hatredIntense hostile aversion
aggression · ill-will · acrimony · hostility · antipathy · resentment · malice · strife · tension · discord
negotiations
Formal discussion seeking agreement
- treatiesFormal agreements between states
- sanctionsPunitive international restrictions
- accordsMutual agreements reached
alliances · neutrality · mediation · arbitration · reparations · armistice · ceasefire · sovereignty · declaration · ultimatum
- enemiesenemy, foe, foes, adversary, nemesis
- factionsfactions, faction, splinter groups, splinter party, blocs
- negativistspessimists, defeatists, doomers, doomsayers, negative Nellies
- war lawGeneva Conventions, laws of war, Hague Conventions, humanitarian law, military protocol
belligerentsneutrals
Those taking no side
peacekeepers · non-combatants · non-belligerents · bystanders · neutral nations
belligerentspeacemakers
Those who resolve conflicts
pacifists · mediators · conciliators · arbitrators · diplomats