nondefense

American

[nahn-di-fens, nahn-dee-fens] / ˌnɑn dɪˈfɛns, ˌnɑnˈdi fɛns /

adjective

not related to or involved in the military defense of a country or its armed forces.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“The decrease in government spending reflected a decrease in federal government spending. Both nondefense and defense consumption expenditures for employee compensation declined,” the BEA said in a technical note in Friday’s release.

From Barron's

More striking: Fiscal 2026 nondefense discretionary spending should come in about $18 billion less than 2025 levels, with overall discretionary about $1 billion less.

From The Wall Street Journal

To begin with, $2 trillion is more than the entire annual discretionary budget of defense and nondefense spending.

From Slate

That agreement included a 2-year cap on the federal government’s nondefense discretionary spending, including NASA’s budget.

From Science Magazine

Overall, the two spending packages provide about a 3% boost for defense, while keeping nondefense spending roughly flat with the year before.

From Seattle Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023