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
And his kind of bare-knuckle romanticism was reinforced in me by Roethke and early Ted Hughes.
—
Literary Hub, 12 Dec. 2025
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
See All Example Sentences for bare-knuckle
Literary Hub, 12 Dec. 2025
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
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
-
Fighting those of a comparable or higher status brought greater prizes, advancement in the rankings, and more glory, perhaps even discharge from the gladiatorial school.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Apr. 2026
-
Ancient Greeks wagered on the (occasionally rigged) early Olympic Games; Romans bet on chariot races and gladiatorial contests (also sometimes rigged).—
McKay Coppins,
The Atlantic,
12 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The revamp removes the in-your-face articles and replaces the Widget board with a more minimalist, white-space approach.—
Michael Kan,
PC Magazine,
1 May 2026
-
By contrast, Lillian’s counterpart and best friend is cast member and former standup comedian Gina Ross, a sarcastic, iconoclastic, in-your-face performer.—
Lee Kelly,
PEOPLE,
12 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Cohen offered limited clarity on the structure during what at times was a combative and awkward interview, repeatedly directing viewers to the company's website for details.—
Yun Li,Anniek Bao,Annie Palmer,
CNBC,
4 May 2026
-
Monday’s testimony was combative, raising ideas about what kind of tech industry wealth is truly deserved.—
David Ingram,
NBC news,
4 May 2026
Adjective
-
The critics are not kind to him in either performance, but Scorsese is impressed with his work ethic and pugnacious attitude.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
13 Mar. 2026
-
The flag-waving, the face paint, the pugnacious songs, the banners, the bellicose taunts at the opponents, the arms flung out in unison foster a collective spirit that can turn violent at times.—
Ian Buruma,
New Yorker,
23 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The discussion grew confrontational quickly, however, when Riley criticized Albert’s parenting.—
Julia Prodis Sulek,
Mercury News,
7 May 2026
-
Hollywood feels incompatible with Martel’s sophisticated, confrontational movies rooted in her country’s troubles.—
Carlos Aguilar,
Los Angeles Times,
6 May 2026
Adjective
-
Chicago is known for its hard-nosed politics and take-no-prisoners attitude.—
Glenn Davis,
Chicago Tribune,
3 May 2026
-
Her take-no-prisoners portrayal of Lois quickly became a defining career highlight.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
When he was found, deputies said Ortiz became belligerent, yelled at employees, threatened to harm them with a gun, and grabbed one of the resort employees.—
Steven Yablonski,
CBS News,
6 May 2026
-
In a sea of gray-toned suits and uniforms, the woman trying to soothe her crying baby comes across as an outlier even before a belligerent young salaryman starts screaming at her for disturbing the peace.—
Alison Willmore,
Vulture,
8 Apr. 2026
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
Cite this Entry
“Bare-knuckle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bare-knuckle. Accessed 13 May. 2026.
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