prewar

adjective

pre·​war ˌprē-ˈwȯr How to pronounce prewar (audio)
variants or pre-war
: occurring or existing before a war and especially before World War II
prewar conditions
the prewar era/period/years
the country's prewar population
prewar levels of industrial production
an apartment in a prewar building

Examples of prewar in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web That comes to roughly 14% of Israel’s prewar military spending, much of which goes to U.S. defense companies. David McHugh, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2024 Since February 2022, using unmanned attack drones, Ukraine has successfully sunk or damaged Russian ships and whittled away at Russia’s Black sea fleet, sinking about 15 of its prewar fleet of about 36 warships and damaging many others. Colin Flint, The Conversation, 3 Oct. 2024 In one scene, Miller rests unabashedly topless with her friends, a picture of prewar bliss. Esther Zuckerman, TIME, 12 Sep. 2024 From a French country farmhouse to a prewar city apartment, this quilt is bound to look good in any space. Megan Wahn, Architectural Digest, 4 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for prewar 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'prewar.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1868, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of prewar was in 1868

Dictionary Entries Near prewar

Cite this Entry

“Prewar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prewar. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

prewar

adjective
pre·​war
ˈprē-ˈwȯ(ə)r
: occurring or existing before a war

More from Merriam-Webster on prewar

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!