# Thucydides trap

> English word · Noun · IPA /θjuːˈsɪdɪdiːz tɹæp/

## Definitions
1. An apparent tendency towards war when an emerging power threatens to displace an existing great power as a regional or international hegemon.

## Etymology
An allusion to the ancient Athenian historian and military general Thucydides, who posited that the Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta had been inevitable because of Spartan fears of the growth of Athenian power. Coined by American political scientist Graham T. Allison.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/thucydides-trap