From war +‎ -like. Compare the older warly.

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈwɔɹlaɪk/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈwɔːlaɪk/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

warlike (comparative more warlike, superlative most warlike)

1. Hostile and belligerent.
   • 2026 January 3, Ray Sanchez, “Nicolás Maduro’s capture by US met with celebrations in South Florida and apprehension in Caracas”, in CNN‎^[1], archived from the original on 3 January 2026:

     “I see a somewhat warlike atmosphere. Silence can say many things,” a driver from eastern Caracas told CNN, asking not to be identified for security reasons.

2. Martial, bellicose or militaristic.
   • c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part[…], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones,[…], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire; London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act I, scene i:

     Doubt not my Lord and gratious Soueraigne,
     But Tamburlaine, and that Tartarian rout,
     Shall either periſh by our warlike hands,
     Or plead for mercie at your highneſſe feet.

   • 2013 July 20, “Old soldiers?”, in The Economist‎^[2], volume 408, number 8845, archived from the original on 8 March 2023:

     Whether modern, industrial man is less or more warlike than his hunter-gatherer ancestors is impossible to determine. The machine gun is so much more lethal than the bow and arrow that comparisons are meaningless.

• nonwarlike
• peaceful