belligerency

[ buh-lij-er-uh n-see ]

/ bəˈlɪdʒ ər ən si /

the position or status as a belligerent; state of being actually engaged in war.

belligerence.

Origin of belligerency

First recorded in 1860–65; belliger(ent) + -ency

Mr. Luce noted these signs of belligerency and braced his firedog legs.

The Skipper and the Skipped |Holman Day
The first was Adams' protest against the British recognition of a status of belligerency.

Great Britain and the American Civil War |Ephraim Douglass Adams
But the first glance about the room restored the father's belligerency.

Mlle. Fouchette |Charles Theodore Murray
"Only yourself," Slim announced, laughing and jumping back quickly to avoid any belligerency his joke might inspire in the other.

The Brighton Boys in the Radio Service |James R. Driscoll

The St. Albans raid, which occurred a few months later, was a similar act of belligerency.

Camp-Fire and Cotton-Field |Thomas W. Knox

belligerency

/ (bɪˈlɪdʒərənsɪ) /

the state of being at war