bare-knuckle
adjective or adverb
bare-knuck·le
ˈber-ˈnə-kəl 
variants
or less commonly bare-knuckled
or bare-knuckles
1
: not using boxing gloves
champion bare-knuckle prizefighter of England—
Dennis Craig
Dennis Craigwhen men fought bare-knuckle
2
: having a fierce unrelenting character
bare-knuckle politics
Examples of bare-knuckle in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The 2022 bare-knuckle holiday sensation Violent Night followed an embittered Santa, armed with lethal combat skills, who takes out a team of ruthless mercenaries to rescue a girl and her family.
—Justin Kroll, Deadline, 28 Aug. 2025
As Republicans moved to have state legislatures under their umbrella of control add more favorable seats to the 2026 midterm maps in Texas, Ohio and Indiana, Newsom matched the bare-knuckle approach with a new version of California's congressional maps that would eliminate five GOP-leaning seats.
—Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 24 Aug. 2025
His best bare-knuckle performance came in a 2024 win over ex-Bellator champion Daniel Straus.
—Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 19 Aug. 2025
Advertisement Mike Davis, a conservative lawyer and bare-knuckle Trump defender, is also expected to be an influential voice in the process.
—Brian Bennett, Time, 29 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for bare-knuckle
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Justin Kroll, Deadline, 28 Aug. 2025
As Republicans moved to have state legislatures under their umbrella of control add more favorable seats to the 2026 midterm maps in Texas, Ohio and Indiana, Newsom matched the bare-knuckle approach with a new version of California's congressional maps that would eliminate five GOP-leaning seats.
—Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 24 Aug. 2025
His best bare-knuckle performance came in a 2024 win over ex-Bellator champion Daniel Straus.
—Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 19 Aug. 2025
Advertisement Mike Davis, a conservative lawyer and bare-knuckle Trump defender, is also expected to be an influential voice in the process.
—Brian Bennett, Time, 29 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for bare-knuckle
Cite this Entry
“Bare-knuckle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bare-knuckle. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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