territorial dispute

noun

: a disagreement about who controls a particular territory
The two countries are in a territorial dispute.

Examples of territorial dispute in a Sentence

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The fighting on the Ethiopian side of the border stems from a territorial dispute between the Oromia and Somali regional administrations, aggravated by the killing of a 13-year-old girl in an area administered by the Somali regional administration. — ABC News, 27 Oct. 2026 The arrest comes as bilateral relations have sharply deteriorated over the war in Ukraine and the territorial dispute over the Kuril Islands. — Mary Ilyushina, Washington Post, 14 Oct. 2026 Long-running tensions The case adds to long-running tensions between Russia and Japan, which have yet to sign a formal World War Two peace treaty due to a territorial dispute over the Kuril Islands, known in Japan as the Northern Territories. — CNN Money, 14 Oct. 2026 With its commercial oil production expected to start in 2028, Sea Lion has raised the stakes of a territorial dispute that led Britain and Argentina to a short and bloody war in 1982. — Sergio Farella, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for territorial dispute

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Cite this Entry

“Territorial dispute.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/territorial%20dispute. Accessed 31 Oct. 2026.

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