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combatant

noun

Definition of combatantnext
as in soldier
a person, group, or country that fights in a war or battle Britain was a major combatant in World War II.

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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 combatant Some of the people on at the scene told CBS News New York's Dave Carlin that one of the combatants had a knife. — Jeff Capellini, CBS News, 16 Sep. 2026 Fate can also take a hand, with unforeseen developments bolstering one combatant’s negotiating position. — John R. Bolton, Washington Post, 9 Sep. 2026 Killing unarmed men, non combatants and even women and children. — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 8 Sep. 2026 Aircraft, submarines and missiles have repeatedly challenged large surface combatants. — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 7 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for combatant
Recent Examples of Synonyms for combatant
  1. soldier
  2. fighter
  3. warrior
  4. trooper
Noun
  • Amid the jubilation of the liberation, there is a darker side, as women who fraternized with German soldiers are tracked down and brutally publicly shamed.
    — Zac Ntim, Deadline, 25 Sep. 2026
  • More than 500 soldiers and 600 police officers were deployed, according to the Colombian presidency.
    — Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of soldier
Noun
  • Boeing wins Navy fighter competition Boeing was competing with Northrop Grumman for the F/A-XX contract.
    — Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 30 Sep. 2026
  • Turkey for years battled Turkish Kurdish fighters based in northern Iraq before agreeing this year to a peace deal.
    — Jane Arraf, NPR, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of fighter
Noun
  • Here the focus was not nationalism but a spiritual discipline that supposedly allowed warriors to accept death with equanimity.
    — Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 22 Sep. 2026
  • No stranger to controversy or criticism, Sweeney, 29, faced the music from Olympic athletes, entertainment icons and millions of keyboard warriors who voiced their opinions of the naked ad.
    — Tracy Wright, FOXNews.com, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of warrior
Noun
  • After conducting a traffic stop, troopers determined that the vehicle was not registered.
    — Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 26 Sep. 2026
  • Stein previously ordered flags lowered to half-staff for a state trooper killed in a crash and after a state representative died from cancer, The N&O reported.
    — Anna Roman, Charlotte Observer, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of trooper

Browse Nearby Words

combat
combatant
combatants
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Cite this Entry

“Combatant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/combatant. Accessed 2 Oct. 2026.

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