hawkish

adjective

hawk·​ish ˈhȯ-kish 

1

: resembling or suggesting a hawk or the beak of a hawk in appearance

a hawkish nose

He has a thatch of black curly hair and hawkish features.

—Jeff Shear

2

: having a militant attitude (as in a dispute) and advocating immediate vigorous action

especially : supporting war or warlike policies

a hawkish politician

He was a frequent and persistently hawkish participant in the war councils of the Administration.

—Vincent Blasi

While definitions vary, "neoconservative" generally refers to formerly moderate policy advocates who favor a hawkish and assertive foreign policy to implant democracy and American values abroad.

—Paul Richter

hawkishly adverb

Land is expensive, scarce, and watched hawkishly by environmentalists.

—Boston Magazine

hawkishness noun

… his Western anti-government philosophy and cold-war hawkishness…

—Jon Meacham

Examples of hawkish in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Still, their view has leaned more hawkish in their rate projection, with four members seeing no rate changes in 2025. —Yun Li, CNBC, 19 Mar. 2025

The Fed may not even need to be hawkish to spook the market, said Larry Benedict of the Opportunistic Trader. —Jesse Pound, CNBC, 18 Mar. 2025

But in many respects, the administration has been less hawkish than many expected. —Joshua Keating, Vox, 18 Mar. 2025

That more hawkish stance is now entrenched in Washington, but the shift toward confrontation and economic nationalism has gone too far. —Myron Brilliant, TIME, 12 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1747, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for hawkish

• mawkish