Meaning & use
belligerently
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Meaning
adverbnot comparable
In a hostile, quarrelsome way that shows the person is looking for an argument or a fight.
Grammar: Describes how someone speaks or acts: he answered belligerently. It usually sits after the verb.
Patterns
- say something belligerently
- stare belligerently at someone
When asked to move his car, he folded his arms and replied belligerently that nobody could make him.
She glared belligerently at the referee after the decision.
The man shouted belligerently at the bouncer until he was escorted out.
Common combinations
- stare belligerently
- He stared belligerently at the officer who had stopped him.
- demand belligerently
- The customer demanded belligerently to see the manager.
- speak belligerently
- Don't speak so belligerently; we are only asking a question.
- glare belligerently
- The goalkeeper glared belligerently at the striker.
- belligerently refuse
- He belligerently refused to answer any questions.
Synonyms and how they differ
- aggressively
- Aggressively is broader and can describe forceful action, such as selling aggressively, while belligerently always suggests hostility toward a person.
- combatively
- Combatively stresses a readiness to argue or contest, and it is a little more formal.
- truculently
- Truculently suggests sullen, defiant bad temper rather than loud aggression.
- pugnaciously
- Pugnaciously describes someone who loves a fight and is often physically ready to start one.
Opposites
Word family
- belligerent adjective
- hostile and eager to fight or argue
- belligerent noun
- a nation or group engaged in a war
- belligerence noun
- aggressive, quarrelsome behavior
- belligerency noun
- the state of being at war
Commonly confused: belligerently or bellicose?
belligerently vs bellicose
Bellicose means eager to start wars or fights as a general attitude, while belligerently describes the manner of one particular action.
Practice
When asked to move his car, he folded his arms and answered ___ that nobody could make him.
Choose one answer.
Belligerently fits someone who is hostile and ready to argue. Gratefully and timidly describe opposite attitudes, and absently means without paying attention.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “belligerently”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.