war stories
Veterans' campfire tales
War stories are accounts of experiences in combat, told by veterans.
By extension, war stories are any tales from past professional or personal challenges—workplace veterans swap war stories about difficult clients, early startups, or office politics.
The term often implies embellishment or repetition: He's always telling the same war stories about his days on Wall Street.
Spoken or written narratives
- anecdotesBrief amusing accounts
- accountsRecords of transactions
- yarnsThreads or tall tales
- sagasExtended heroic narratives
recollections · memoirs · testimonies · chronicles · episodes · adventures · legends · folklore
Overstating beyond reality
- braggingExcessive self-praise
- one-upmanshipQuest to surpass others
- veteransFormer armed forces members
- old-timersLongtime participants or members
battle-scarred · in the trenches · been there · back in my day · corporate · startup · seasoned · rookie
Courage in danger
- braveryBoldness before danger
- courageFortitude facing danger
- gallantryCourage, especially in combat
- medalsAwards for achievement
commendation · sacrifice · fearlessness · daring · audacity · rescue · distinguished service · Purple Heart
Chronic reaction to horrific events
- flashbacksInvoluntary vivid memory episodes
- nightmaresTerrifying sleep experiences
- shellshockTrauma from combat exposure
- scarsHealed wound tissue
suffering · anguish · grief · loss · wounded · haunted · torment · triggers
Combat engagement area
- firefightExchange of gunfire
- ambushSurprise strike from concealment
- siegeEncirclement forcing surrender
- shellingSustained artillery attack
trenches · foxhole · frontline · crossfire · bombardment · casualties · skirmish · engagement
Sustained effort capacity
- resilienceCapacity to recover quickly
- hardshipSuffering from difficult circumstances
- POWCaptured military personnel
- captivityState of being confined
escape · evasion · rationing · resourcefulness · camaraderie · makeshift · foraging · behind enemy lines
tales
Spoken or written narratives
sagas · recollections · memoirs · testimonies · chronicles · episodes · adventures · legends · folklore · lore
exaggeration
Overstating beyond reality
- braggingExcessive self-praise
- one-upmanshipQuest to surpass others
- veteransFormer armed forces members
old-timers · battle-scarred · in the trenches · been there · back in my day · corporate · startup · seasoned · rookie · hazing
valor
Courage in danger
medals · commendation · sacrifice · fearlessness · daring · audacity · rescue · distinguished service · Purple Heart · Victoria Cross
PTSD
Chronic reaction to horrific events
- flashbacksInvoluntary vivid memory episodes
- nightmaresTerrifying sleep experiences
- shellshockTrauma from combat exposure
scars · suffering · anguish · grief · loss · wounded · haunted · torment · triggers · hypervigilance
battlefield
Combat engagement area
- firefightExchange of gunfire
- ambushSurprise strike from concealment
- siegeEncirclement forcing surrender
shelling · trenches · foxhole · frontline · crossfire · bombardment · casualties · skirmish · engagement · under fire
endurance
Sustained effort capacity
- resilienceCapacity to recover quickly
- hardshipSuffering from difficult circumstances
- POWCaptured military personnel
captivity · escape · evasion · rationing · resourcefulness · camaraderie · makeshift · foraging · behind enemy lines · liberation
- genresaction, comedy, detective fiction, fantasy, horror
- talestale, tall tales, short story, yarns, folk tale
- war literaturebattle epic, battle scenes, antiwar novel, WWII history, Tolstoy
- war memoirscamp survivors, Holocaust survivors, hidden children
- fictionfiction, novel, novels, novella, novellas
- nonfictionbiography, autobiography, biographies, history, memoir
war, stories, warfare, wars, warlike, wartime, warmonger, warhorse, warmongering