infighting

noun

in·​fight·​ing ˈin-ˌfī-tiŋ How to pronounce infighting (audio)
1
: prolonged and often bitter dissension or rivalry among members of a group or organization
bureaucratic infighting
2
: rough-and-tumble fighting
3
: fighting or boxing at close quarters
infight intransitive verb
infighter noun

Examples of infighting in a Sentence

continued infighting has just completely robbed that political action committee of its effectiveness
Recent Examples on the Web Many of Karamo’s supporters lost faith in her after infighting became a reoccurring problem in the party in recent months, the Associated Press reported. USA TODAY, 28 Feb. 2024 Past efforts by the group to intervene in primaries have often caused infighting. Shane Goldmacher, New York Times, 28 Feb. 2024 Slater's win Monday night came after a year of infighting among committee members, dysfunction that hindered efforts to elect a Republican governor and left the county committee with nearly no money. Jolene Almendarez, The Enquirer, 27 Feb. 2024 And that convention is going to be held during growing chaos and infighting within the Republican party. Ashley Lopez, NPR, 27 Feb. 2024 Topline Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel will step down from her role on March 8, the committee confirmed Monday, ending a record tenure as head of the party after former President Donald Trump called for her to be replaced amid fundraising struggles and party infighting. Alison Durkee, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024 Republican infighting has led the speaker to leverage Democratic votes to clear procedural hurdles erected by the Freedom Caucus, whose members are furious about Johnson’s approach to spending issues. Jacob Bogage, Washington Post, 5 Feb. 2024 The forensic unit lacked standard evidence-processing procedures for years and an effort to draft them crumbled amid infighting. Sam Kmack, The Arizona Republic, 10 Jan. 2024 Hwangbo added during the meeting that Klinsmann, who had refused to stand down ahead of World Cup qualifying games next month, had said that the infighting affected the performance of the players against Jordan. John Duerden, USA TODAY, 16 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'infighting.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1816, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Time Traveler
The first known use of infighting was in 1816

Dictionary Entries Near infighting

Cite this Entry

“Infighting.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/infighting. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

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