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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Recent Examples of combatant
In experiments inspired by drone warfare, his team asked participants to categorize images as civilians or enemy combatants and to choose whether to fire a missile at each potential target.
—
Steven Melendez, Scientific American, 22 May 2026
ARoss’ Brand Risk brand has built a lane staging chaos between unlikely combatants.
—Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026
The ministry, part of Gaza’s Hamas-run government, doesn’t give a breakdown between civilians and combatants.
—Natalie Melzer, Los Angeles Times, 20 May 2026
At the same time, the new combatants, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) on the one side and the Soviets and their allies on the other, had different approaches to how their tanks were used.
—Matthew S Williams, Interesting Engineering, 20 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for combatant
Steven Melendez, Scientific American, 22 May 2026
ARoss’ Brand Risk brand has built a lane staging chaos between unlikely combatants.
—Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026
The ministry, part of Gaza’s Hamas-run government, doesn’t give a breakdown between civilians and combatants.
—Natalie Melzer, Los Angeles Times, 20 May 2026
At the same time, the new combatants, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) on the one side and the Soviets and their allies on the other, had different approaches to how their tanks were used.
—Matthew S Williams, Interesting Engineering, 20 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for combatant
Recent Examples of Synonyms for combatant
Noun
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Among those killed in the flurry of strikes were five women and children and a Lebanese soldier.—
Kyla Guilfoil,
NBC news,
29 May 2026
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The Guard’s space was designed to serve about 350 soldiers.—
Elliot Mann,
Twin Cities,
29 May 2026
Noun
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Given Coker’s track record and the desire to build attention for the new MMA league and its fighters, tournaments are expected to play a key role.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
2 June 2026
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Few modern fighters have this feature, and the old F-18s cannot match it.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
2 June 2026
Noun
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But, just as the film balances a wild blend of sci-fi, fantasy, comedy, action, and 80's nostalgia, Teela balances her role as a serious warrior and leader with some seriously relatable emotional ties.—
Chelsea Gohd,
Space.com,
30 May 2026
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The nurturing Moon in your sign opposes warrior Mars in your 7th House of Partnership, so your needs and someone else’s agenda pull in different directions.—
Tarot.com,
New York Daily News,
28 May 2026
Noun
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The decision to send in state troopers – some on horseback – infuriated many protesters while drawing praise from Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin.—
Leigh Waldman,
CNN Money,
2 June 2026
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See detailed results Democratic Primary Julian Beaudion, a former South Dakota state trooper and a community organizer, is unopposed for the Democratic nomination for Senate.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
2 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Combatant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/combatant. Accessed 4 Jun. 2026.
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