- belligerent (adj.)
- 1570s, from L. belligerantem (nom. belligerans), pp. of belligerare "to wage war," from bellum "war" + gerere "to bear, to carry." The noun meaning "party or nation at war" is from 1811. Related: Belligerence; belligerency.
- polemic
- 1638, "controversial argument or discussion," from Gk. polemikos "warlike, belligerent," from polemos "war." Meaning "one who writes in opposition to another" is attested from 1680.
"The worst offense that can be committed by a polemic is to stigmatize those who hold a contrary opinion as bad and immoral men." [John Stuart Mill, 1806-73]
Polemicize is recorded from 1953.