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strife

(strīf)

1. Heated, often violent conflict or disagreement. See Synonyms at conflict.

2. A conflict or quarrel: "His mind seemed older than theirs: it shone coldly on their strifes and happiness and regrets like a moon upon a younger earth" (James Joyce).

3. Contention or competition between rivals.

[Middle English strif, from Old French estrit, estrif, from Frankish *strīd.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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