tug-of-war
noun
plural tugs-of-war
1
: a struggle for supremacy or control usually involving two antagonists
2
: a contest in which two teams pull against each other at opposite ends of a rope with the object of pulling the middle of the rope over a mark on the ground
Examples of tug-of-war in a Sentence
the effort to get their teenage son to keep his room clean is a constant tug-of-war
Recent Examples on the Web
The intense tug-of-war between Shroud’s army and the SDN requires smart thinking, with failures easily mounting up.
—
Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 13 Nov. 2025
As Bryant explains, ageing stars can efficiently engulf their close-orbiting planets due to a gravitational tug-of-war called tidal interaction.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 8 Nov. 2025
There’s a tug-of-war between comfort and control, Libra.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 7 Nov. 2025
The developments, for now, bring to an end the national tug-of-war over how much aid low-income families would receive during the ongoing government shutdown.
—JosÉ Luis Villegas, Sacbee.com, 7 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tug-of-war
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Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 13 Nov. 2025
As Bryant explains, ageing stars can efficiently engulf their close-orbiting planets due to a gravitational tug-of-war called tidal interaction.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 8 Nov. 2025
There’s a tug-of-war between comfort and control, Libra.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 7 Nov. 2025
The developments, for now, bring to an end the national tug-of-war over how much aid low-income families would receive during the ongoing government shutdown.
—JosÉ Luis Villegas, Sacbee.com, 7 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tug-of-war
Cite this Entry
“Tug-of-war.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tug-of-war. Accessed 27 Nov. 2025.
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