1
as in throng
a great number of persons or creatures massed together
I had to fight my way through the scrum of holiday shoppers at the mall
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in skirmish
a physical dispute between opposing individuals or groups
when the server spilled a drink on a customer, they got into a bit of a scrum before being separated
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in bedlam
British
a place of uproar or confusion
London's tube is quite a scrum during rush hour
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of scrum
Lawmakers have cycled through classified briefings, TV interviews and hallway scrums with reporters, but have taken little formal action related to Trump’s war efforts — just two unsuccessful votes aimed at limiting the conflict.
—
Ana Ceballos
follow, Los Angeles Times, 15 Mar. 2026
The referees broke up the scrum before anything could happen, with the foul eventually upgraded to a flagrant.
—Eric Koreen, New York Times, 14 Mar. 2026
During the scrum involving Sherwood and Barzal, Horvat used his gloved hand to flip the visor on Eklund’s helmet.
—Curtis Pashelka, Mercury News, 8 Mar. 2026
Coach Prime announced this past Friday, his first media scrum of the 2026 spring football calendar, that the Buffs are going into his fourth season without a special teams coordinator.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 7 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for scrum
Ana Ceballos
follow, Los Angeles Times, 15 Mar. 2026
The referees broke up the scrum before anything could happen, with the foul eventually upgraded to a flagrant.
—Eric Koreen, New York Times, 14 Mar. 2026
During the scrum involving Sherwood and Barzal, Horvat used his gloved hand to flip the visor on Eklund’s helmet.
—Curtis Pashelka, Mercury News, 8 Mar. 2026
Coach Prime announced this past Friday, his first media scrum of the 2026 spring football calendar, that the Buffs are going into his fourth season without a special teams coordinator.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 7 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for scrum
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scrum
Noun
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Two small tents shaded those who got there earliest, leaving throngs of fans — the rest of us — to bake in the sun as security locked our phones in pouches.—
Steven J. Horowitz,
Variety,
24 Mar. 2026
-
The throngs gathered for what almost happened and what actually did take place.—
Ken Sugiura,
AJC.com,
17 Mar. 2026
Noun
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In a dangerous escalation from cross-border skirmishes, Pakistan launched air strikes at the end of February, targeting major cities including Kabul.—
Harriet Marsden,
TheWeek,
24 Mar. 2026
-
The Peaky Blinders don’t really lose any men at all in this skirmish.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
20 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Bogle is able to cross into the box, where the two strikers are again creating bedlam for the centre-backs.—
Beren Cross,
New York Times,
20 Mar. 2026
-
Another centered on a teenage girl (Chloë Sevigny doppelgänger Emma Halleen), whose insecurities blind her to a life that is, on its surface, pretty good, finds a palpable sadness within the bedlam of the show.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Then a crowd of people fled all at once.—
Ryan Oehrli
March 24,
Charlotte Observer,
24 Mar. 2026
-
As spring break travel winds down, airports across the country are still dealing with heavy crowds and long security lines, amid the partial government shutdown.—
Marissa Armas,
CBS News,
23 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Taken together, the clashes in Virginia, New Jersey, Utah, Wisconsin, and other states point to a deeper institutional standoff.—
Kaelan Deese,
The Washington Examiner,
22 Mar. 2026
-
Shifting opinions While the 2024 war saw relative unity in Lebanon behind Hezbollah’s clashes with the IDF – feelings driven by anger at the war in Gaza – this latest conflict has seen emboldened opposition to the armed group.—
Joseph Ataman,
CNN Money,
21 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Given her reputation and TikTok-famous opener Ella Langley, the badge line was a madhouse.—
Deborah Sengupta Stith,
Austin American Statesman,
17 Mar. 2026
-
In the fourth quarter, Soldier Field was an absolute madhouse with 60,000-plus waving towels, chewing fingernails, frothing at the mouth and … grating cheese?—
Jon Greenberg,
New York Times,
11 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Easier said than done when both parties leave a swarm of paparazzi in their wakes.—
Anna Grace Lee,
Vogue,
20 Mar. 2026
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For their part, Iranian officials signaled that energy facilities were on the table as swarms of its drones targeted the Shaybah oil field in Saudi Arabia, the Shah gas field southwest of Abu Dhabi and oil facilities in Fujairah.—
Kristian Coates Ulrichsen,
The Conversation,
19 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
At the time of the initial gun battle, the MacEgans were on an afternoon walk through a nearby field.—
Rosalio Ahumada,
Sacbee.com,
26 Mar. 2026
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So California may be readying to wage a two-front battle — the familiar one against smog, but a second, altogether new one, against an administration determined to let California get smoggy again.—
Patt Morrison,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Scrum.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scrum. Accessed 29 Mar. 2026.
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