Cabinet department before Defense (3)

I believe the answer is:

war

(Other definitions for war that I've seen before include "Strife" , "Armed hostility" , "State of armed struggle" , "Large-scale conflict" , "Combat" .)

I've seen this clue in the Newsday.

Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.