belligerent

I

(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)

adj. bellicose, warlike, pugnacious, quarrelsome. See contention, attack. —n. combatant. Ant., peaceful; noncombatant.

II

(Roget's IV) modif.

Syn. warlike, pugnacious, hostile, quarrelsome, contentious, bellicose, warring, militant, martial, warmongering, hawkish, combative, truculent, antagonistic, aggressive, full of fight*; see also aggressive 2 , quarrelsome 1 .

Syn.- belligerent implies engagement in war or fighting or in actions that are likely to provoke fighting [belligerent nations ] ; bellicose implies a warlike or hostile nature, suggesting a readiness to fight [ a bellicose mood ] ; pugnacious and quarrelsome both connote aggressiveness and a willingness to initiate a fight, but quarrelsome more often suggests pettiness and eagerness to fight for little or no reason; contentious suggests an inclination to argue or quarrel, usually with annoying persistence

III

(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus) (VOCABULARY WORD) a.

[buh LIJ ur unt]

quarrelsome, hostile, quick to fight.

Belligerent inner city gangs started the riot.

SYN.: bellicose, pugnacious, quarrelsome, militant, warmongering, warlike, hostile, aggressive, combative, volatile, contentious, peppery.

ANT.: peaceful, passive, pacific

IV

(Roget's Thesaurus II) I adjective 1. Having or showing an eagerness to fight: bellicose, combative, contentious, hostile, militant, pugnacious, quarrelsome, scrappy, truculent, warlike. See ATTACK. 2. Inclined to act in a hostile way: aggressive, combative, contentious, hostile, militant. See ATTACK, ATTITUDE. 3. Of or engaged in warfare: combatant, hostile, militant. Idiom: at war. See ATTACK. II noun One who engages in a combat or struggle: combatant, fighter, soldier, warrior. See CONFLICT.