variants
also bare-knuckled
or bare-knuckles
as in gladiatorial
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bare-knuckle
The film followed Chan Lok-kwun (Raymond Lam), a mainland refugee trying to pay his way to a fake ID by winning bare-knuckle brawls.
—
Marcus Lim, Variety, 29 Oct. 2025
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, 10 Sep. 2025
And to go bare-knuckle with the Chargers.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 7 Sep. 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
See All Example Sentences for bare-knuckle
Marcus Lim, Variety, 29 Oct. 2025
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, 10 Sep. 2025
And to go bare-knuckle with the Chargers.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 7 Sep. 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
See All Example Sentences for bare-knuckle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bare-knuckle
- gladiatorial
- in-your-face
- combative
- pugnacious
- confrontational
- take-no-prisoners
- belligerent
- blood-and-guts
Adjective
-
In America's gladiatorial two-party system, that could well deprive Republicans of a winning political issue with which to batter out-of-touch, climate change-besotted Democrats.—
MSNBC Newsweek,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Dec. 2025
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Speaking a few days before his eagerly awaited womenswear debut for Dior, Anderson described the feeling of stepping into a gladiatorial arena.—
Joelle Diderich,
Footwear News,
3 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Try topping off a deep, neutral outfit with an in-your-face neon beanie, or tone down a print-heavy look with a simple off-white or black style.—
Alison Syrett Cleary,
InStyle,
9 Jan. 2026
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The mountains look glorious, green, and bizarrely in-your-face.—
Dana Goodyear,
New Yorker,
7 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
In an unusually combative video statement, Powell accused the administration of using federal prosecutors to interfere with the Fed's decision-making on interest rates.—
Scott Horsley,
NPR,
13 Jan. 2026
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Perez told the Herald/Times last week that DeSantis hasn’t returned his calls since the combative session ended after two extensions in June.—
Alexandra Glorioso,
Miami Herald,
13 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Instead Linda devolves, becoming more pugnacious and thin-skinned and pissed off.—
Angelica Jade Bastién,
Vulture,
19 Dec. 2025
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The lieutenant governor is campaigning as the pugnacious, liberal choice in her matchup against Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., a more centrist Democrat who has won tough House races.—
Burgess Everett,
semafor.com,
10 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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Video from the scene shows several protest groups gathering in the same area, creating a chaotic and at times confrontational scene.—
Greg Wehner,
FOXNews.com,
11 Jan. 2026
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After much acrimony over the rising costs of police protection and Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony’s confrontational antics, the North Broward city is poised to permanently sever ties with the sheriff’s office after 35 years.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
5 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Ricky Gervais has hosted the Golden Globes five times, making Hollywood sweat with his take-no-prisoners approach to jokes mocking showbiz.—
William Earl,
Variety,
30 Dec. 2025
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Directed by genre-hopping Ben Wheatley and written by John Wick creator Derek Kolstad from a story hatched by Kolstad and Odenkirk, the subversive Western is a take-no-prisoners gore fest that peppers all the visceral carnage with an equal sprinkling of dry wit.—
Michael Rechtshaffen,
HollywoodReporter,
15 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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In this context, Trump’s belligerent signaling has created a perverse strategic dilemma for Latin American governments.—
Oliver Stuenkel,
Time,
9 Jan. 2026
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His was an innings of belligerent brilliance.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Dawn of the Dead's flood of blood-and-guts is among the most memorable in film history, if only for the unnaturally vivid shades of red.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Oct. 2025
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Still, these sections lack the blood-and-guts tension of her interactions with her mother.—
Madeline Leung Coleman,
Vulture,
27 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bare-knuckle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bare-knuckle. Accessed 17 Jan. 2026.
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