as in head-to-head
in direct confrontation or competition
the two brothers decided to go mano a mano in one final match to determine who was the better tennis player
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mano a mano
Still the competition seems like perfect Tom–versus–Aaron, mano a mano, gay against gay.
—
Brian Moylan, Vulture, 3 Oct. 2025
Surreal and dreamlike vignettes, and some laugh out loud moments of levity, break up mano a mano scenes in that hut that test the intensity of Bean and Day-Lewis.
—Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mano a mano
Brian Moylan, Vulture, 3 Oct. 2025
Surreal and dreamlike vignettes, and some laugh out loud moments of levity, break up mano a mano scenes in that hut that test the intensity of Bean and Day-Lewis.
—Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mano a mano
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mano a mano
Adverb
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At the time, the Ferrari 512 BB was going head-to-head with the Lamborghini Countach, which boasted a higher top speed of 192 mph, or four mph faster than the 512 BB’s claimed top speed of 188 mph.—
Erik Shilling,
Robb Report,
21 Oct. 2025
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The championship brought together teams from across Europe to showcase their small but agile robots in a series of head-to-head battles.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
19 Oct. 2025
Adverb
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Private communications may have to be face-to-face.—
Mark Mondier,
Arkansas Online,
19 Oct. 2025
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Economic deals were again dangled, and – crucially – there was an agreement for a second face-to-face presidential summit, this time in Budapest, Hungary, where ending the Ukraine war could once more be discussed, if not agreed.—
Matthew Chance,
CNN Money,
17 Oct. 2025
Adverb
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In the new study, led by Jeffrey Andrews-Hanna, a planetary scientist at the University of Arizona, researchers suggest that the oblong shape of the basin isn't from a head-on collision with an asteroid coming from the south, as previously believed.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
16 Oct. 2025
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Instead, if Chris faces this whole thing head-on, people will respect her for it.—
Maggie Fremont,
Vulture,
15 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mano a mano.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mano%20a%20mano. Accessed 22 Oct. 2025.
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