bare-knuckle

adjective

variants also bare-knuckled or bare-knuckles
Definition of bare-knucklenext
as in gladiatorial

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bare-knuckle The Buffalo Chip schedule includes bike shows, stunt competitions, charity rides, bare-knuckle fighting and the Motorcycles As Art exhibition. — Josh Max, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026 The Tates, who hold dual US and UK citizenship, were arrested by the US Marshals Service on July 18 while on their way to a bare-knuckle boxing event in Miami. — Julianna Bragg, CNN Money, 21 July 2026 Hassabis, who won the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 2024 for pioneering the use of AI in protein prediction, is based in London and has largely avoided the viper pit created by the bare-knuckle AI race playing out in Silicon Valley. — Reed Albergotti, semafor.com, 15 July 2026 Kerr, a bare-knuckle boxer and father who was in his 30s, boarded a Jet2 plane from Larnaca in Cyprus on Sunday, June 21, with his girlfriend, the outlets shared. — Adam England, PEOPLE, 25 June 2026 Surviving and thriving during 50 years of bare-knuckle Massachusetts politics is proof of that. — Jon Keller, CBS News, 15 June 2026 The spectacle brought together two bare-knuckle brands that have been intertwined for years, and was symbolic of the pugilistic moment in American politics. — Zac Anderson, USA Today, 14 June 2026 California’s decision to redraw its congressional map to flip as many as five House seats to Democrats in November is poised to play a big and potentially decisive role in the nation’s broader, bare-knuckle fight for control of Congress. — Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 1 June 2026 For Republicans, despite victories in a bare-knuckle redistricting war, the House already looks lost. — Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 29 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bare-knuckle
  1. gladiatorial
  2. in-your-face
  3. combative
  4. pugnacious
  5. confrontational
  6. take-no-prisoners
  7. belligerent
  8. blood-and-guts
Adjective
  • Erivo plays a British defense barrister who exudes enviable brilliance in navigating the ruthless and gladiatorial London courtrooms.
    — Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 7 July 2026
  • This one has been commemorated by a gladiatorial contest on the White House grounds and by an, apparently coming up, a long speech by the president of the day.
    — David Frum, The Atlantic, 1 July 2026
Definition of gladiatorial
Adjective
  • The annual game, played where the 1989 Kevin Costner movie filmed, has become one of the baseball’s most visually appealing events due to its lack of in-your-face corporatization.
    — Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 13 July 2026
  • But for Wildmon and Buchanan, in-your-face avant-garde art was an insult to the average person, certainly the average American Christian.
    — Louis Menand, New Yorker, 13 July 2026
Definition of in-your-face
Adjective
  • In the combative hearing, Paul and other Republicans accused Fauci of lying in earlier testimony about the coronavirus’s origins, something the longtime National Institutes of Health scientist has forcefully denied.
    — Lauran Neergaard, Fortune, 29 July 2026
  • Every stage also awards a €2,000 (or over $2,200) prize to the most combative rider.
    — Emily Blackwood, PEOPLE, 26 July 2026
Definition of combative
Adjective
  • Indeed, his rising profile as a pugnacious public commentator has arguably exceeded his influence on Wall Street.
    — Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, 20 July 2026
  • Friends and colleagues contrasted her pugnacious political statements with her personal kindness and good humor.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 13 July 2026
Definition of pugnacious
Adjective
  • The Venezuelan artist’s latest LP harks back to her experimental mixtapes &&&&& and @@@@@, trading the KiCK series’ pop and reggaeton impulses for confrontational, uncompromising electronic sounds.
    — Andrew Ryce, Pitchfork, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Reflecting on the album in a 2008 interview with SPIN, Costello said people mistook the confrontational pose for genuine swagger.
    — SPIN Staff, SPIN, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of confrontational
Adjective
  • All eight club tracks follow the same basic template, one cribbed from Midwestern producers like Boo Williams and Paul Johnson, as well as early, ravey Daft Punk and, in particular, the take-no-prisoners cutups of Germany’s Soundhack.
    — Philip Sherburne, Pitchfork, 25 June 2026
  • And Childress got an Earnhardt descendant in Busch — a driver who some considered a villain for his take-no-prisoners style, a father, an all-time great who for the longest time couldn’t win the biggest race of them all.
    — Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 6 June 2026
Definition of take-no-prisoners
Adjective
  • However, his team describes Fred as a tyrant, who is uncaring and belligerent and micro-manages everything.
    — Mary Crossan, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
  • Per the title, Aang is the last surviving airbender after his pacifist brethren were slaughtered by a belligerent, expansionist Fire Nation.
    — Alison Herman, Variety, 24 July 2026
Definition of belligerent
Adjective
  • However, fighters in the UFC seem to get caught up in trying to appease the casuals who can only appreciate blood-and-guts wars.
    — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 29 Mar. 2026
  • 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
Definition of blood-and-guts

Browse Nearby Words

barefaced
bare-knuckle
barely
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Cite this Entry

“Bare-knuckle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bare-knuckle. Accessed 7 Aug. 2026.

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