Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Heated, often violent conflict or disagreement. synonym: conflict.
  • noun A conflict or quarrel.
  • noun Contention or competition between rivals.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A striving or effort to do one's best; earnest attempt or endeavor.
  • noun Emulative contention or rivalry; active struggle for superiority; emulation.
  • noun Antagonistic contention; contention characterized by anger or enmity; discord; conflict; quarrel: as, strife of the elements.
  • noun Synonyms and Strife, Contention. These words agree in being very general, in having a good sense possible, and in seeming elevated or poetical when applied to the organized quarrels of war or to anything more than oral disputes. Strife is the stronger. Contention often indicates the more continued and methodical effort, and hence is more often the word for rivalry in effort to possess something. Such a rivalry, when definite in form and limited in time, is a contest: as, the contests of the Creek games. A contention that is forcible, violent, exhausting, or attended with real or figurative convulsions or contortions, is a struggle. See battle, encounter.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun Archaic The act of striving; earnest endeavor.
  • noun Exertion or contention for superiority; contest of emulation, either by intellectual or physical efforts.
  • noun Altercation; violent contention; fight; battle.
  • noun obsolete That which is contended against; occasion of contest.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Conflict, sometimes violent, usually brief or limited in scope.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun bitter conflict; heated often violent dissension
  • noun lack of agreement or harmony

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

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

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Old French estrif, from Frankish strīban, ultimately of Germanic origin, compare German Streit ("quarrel, dispute") and Icelandic stríð ("war") and Dutch strijd.

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Examples

  • Aren't you making that examination a bit more difficult to do by pretending that it need not be done, and that the strife is already o'er, the battle done, and the "moderates" have beaten back the ideological challenge of the "extremists"?

    Archive 2008-01-01 Not a sheep 2008

  • A contemporary phenomenon related to this strife is the emanation of self-proclaimed "victims" who try to further their own, tendentious agendas by manipulating public opinion.

    Life Upon the Wicked Stage—Freedom of Artistic Expression 1994

  • French unions have a long tradition of street protests, but the current strife is particularly worrisome because it has touched the vital energy sector and is drawing often volatile youth into the mix.

    France Retirement Protests Turn Violent AP 2010

  • The only strife is that it doesn't hold its shape too well but that okay ...

    Archive 2009-04-01 2009

  • Though Dr. Sarna doesn't mention it, perhaps part of the explanation for this lack of denominational strife is because all the movements are experiencing a trend toward greater Jewish ritual practice.

    Paul Golin: What Is the Biggest Divide in the Jewish Community? Paul Golin 2010

  • French unions have a long tradition of street protests, but the current strife is particularly worrisome because it has touched the vital energy sector and is drawing often volatile youth into the mix.

    France Retirement Protests Turn Violent AP 2010

  • Only strife is that I think the vanilla glaze tastes a little too powdered sugary or fake, next time I'll try flavoring it a little better!

    Red Velvet Black & White Cookies 2009

  • French unions have a long tradition of street protests, but the current strife is particularly worrisome because it has touched the vital energy sector and is drawing often volatile youth into the mix.

    France Retirement Protests Turn Violent AP 2010

  • Pretending that most Americans have even the slightest clue about the current details of the strife is way, way off the mark.

    Matthew Yglesias » American Public Prepared to Support Israel in Endless War With Arabs 2010

  • French unions have a long tradition of street protests, but the current strife is particularly worrisome because it has touched the vital energy sector and is drawing often volatile youth into the mix.

    France Retirement Protests Turn Violent AP 2010

Comments

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  • Strife: The last name of the main character in Final Fantasy VII, Cloud.

    "Cloud Strife never says a word."

    ah! How could I forget this one.

    I like doing things, with great strife.

    December 22, 2006