war hawk

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war hawk

Where it comes from

Late 18th c., often attributed to Virginian Congressman John Randolph of Roanoke, but no written evidence exists. Popularized in debates concerning the War of 1812. Sense "eagle" probably a calque of Old English guþhafoc

noun war hawks · warhawk

figuratively A proponent of war or military intrusiveness. Suddenly, John R. Bolton, the conservative war hawk and favorite villain of the left, is the toast of Senate Democrats, the last, best hope to prove their abuse-of-power case against President Trump.
Similar: hawk, warmonger · Opposite: dove, peace dove
dated, literary An eagle.

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MLA

"war hawk." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/war%20hawk. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

war hawk. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/war%20hawk

Chicago

"war hawk." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/war%20hawk.

BibTeX

@misc{war_hawk_2026,
  title = {war hawk},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/war%20hawk},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}