English Reference

Idiom

war of nerves

Meaning

Warfare characterized by psychological manipulation, involving tactics intended to demoralize, frighten, and unnerve opponents in order to prompt surrender.

Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Examples

“The long standoff between the two companies is a war of nerves.”

“The trade negotiations turned into a war of nerves as both sides refused to make the first move.”

“The diplomatic crisis escalated into a grueling war of nerves, testing the resolve of every leader involved in the tense, high-stakes summit.”

Examples

simple

“The long standoff between the two companies is a war of nerves.”

contextual

“The trade negotiations turned into a war of nerves as both sides refused to make the first move.”

complex

“The diplomatic crisis escalated into a grueling war of nerves, testing the resolve of every leader involved in the tense, high-stakes summit.”

Key words

Related idioms

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English Reference