Glossary of terms
| de-mining | the process of removing landmines |
| decoration | an official title or honour given to someone, usually in the form of a medal, as a reward for military bravery |
| defoliant | a herbicide chemical applied to trees and plants to make all their leaves fall off, used in wartime to remove an enemy's vegetative shelter and destroy their crops |
| degenerate | to become worse in some way |
| delegation | a small group of people sent to a place to have talks with other people as representatives of a larger group of people |
| demilitarise | to remove any military presence or function in an area |
| demobilise | to release troops from military service - demobilisation (noun) |
| deploy | to organise and position troops, weapons or resources ready for action - deployment (noun) |
| descent | a person's family background, especially their nationality or social status |
| deserter | someone who leaves their job in the armed forces without permission |
| destroyer | a small, heavily armed warship |
| detachment | a group of soldiers sent away from the main group to do a special job |
| dictator | a ruler who has complete power in a country, especially power which was obtained by force and is used unfairly |
| digger | an Australian or New Zealander, especially a soldier; often used as a term of address |
| diorama | a miniature three-dimensional scene with models of figures arranged against a background |
| dirigible | an airship, such as a zeppelin |
| disembark | to unload goods or passengers from a ship or aeroplane |
| dismount | to get down from a camel, horse, bicycle or armoured vehicle |
| dispatch | a message or report that is sent by army officers or government officials to their headquarters - also 'despatch' |
| displaced | persons who lack a home, through war, political exile, destruction of shelter, or lack of money |
| displaced person | someone who lost their home through war, political exile, destruction of shelter or lack of money |
| dissident | a person who disagrees with and criticises their government, especially because it is undemocratic |
| diversionary | describes an action to distract the enemy from the main point of attack |
| dogfighting | an aerial battle between opposing fighter planes |
| dominion | a nation that was part of the British Empire but had its own government e.g. Australia from 1901 to 1953 |
| dysentery | an infection of the intestine with bacteria or protozoa, characterised by severe diarrhoea |