ENGLISH
REFERENCE

truce

n. countable
B2 Upper Intermediate US //ˈtɹus// UK //tɹˈuːs// truce

n. an agreement between two people or groups to stop fighting for a short time.

n. a temporary cessation of hostilities by agreement of the opposing sides.


SIMPLE

The two brothers finally called a truce after their long argument.

CONTEXTUAL

The warring factions agreed to a three-day truce to allow humanitarian aid to reach the city's residents.

COMPLEX

While the truce provided a much-needed respite for the exhausted soldiers, both sides remained skeptical that it would eventually lead to a permanent peace treaty.

Synonyms
Origin

From Middle English trewes, triwes, trues, plural of trewe, triewe, true (“faithfulness, assurance, pact”), from Old English trēowa, singularized plural of trēow, trȳw (“faith; pledge; agreement”), from Proto-West Germanic treuwu, from Proto-Germanic trewwō (compare Dutch trouw, German Treue, Danish tro, French trêve [< Germanic]), noun form of *triwwiz (“trusty, faithful”). More at true.

Usage

Often used with the verbs 'call', 'declare', or 'break'.

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