war chest

noun

: a fund accumulated to finance a war
broadly : a fund earmarked for a specific purpose, action, or campaign

Examples of war chest in a Sentence

The candidate held fund-raising dinners to build up his war chest.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The war chest is unusually large this deep into the signing period because the Yankees had several agreements, made under previous international scouting director Donny Rowland, fall through following his dismissal. — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 31 Aug. 2026 Who has the larger war chest in this battle of attrition between labor and management? — Evan Drellich, New York Times, 26 Aug. 2026 Democratic leaders like Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer had hoped Vindman’s reputation and campaign war chest would help turn what election analysts had considered a solidly Republican seat into a more competitive race. — Matt Brown, Fortune, 19 Aug. 2026 Donalds had amassed a war chest of more than $111 million, much of it tied to billionaires, developers and utility companies that want to build AI data centers in Florida. — Jeffrey Schweers, The Orlando Sentinel, 19 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for war chest

Word History

First Known Use

1732, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of war chest was in 1732

Rhymes for war chest

See All Rhymes for war chest

Browse Nearby Words

war captain
war chest
war clause
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“War chest.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/war%20chest. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

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