1
as in fights
to oppose (someone) in physical conflict
a general eager to combat the enemy on his own ground
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in opposes
to strive to reduce or eliminate
must marshal all of our resources to combat this disease
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in actions
active fighting during the course of a war
a soldier who served throughout the war without actually seeing combat
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in skirmishes
a physical dispute between opposing individuals or groups
the two stags entered a furious combat for dominance of the herd
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in battles
an earnest effort for superiority or victory over another
the fierce ideological combat between the religionists and the secularists
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of combats
Ronny Maye, Essence, 31 Oct. 2025
Nourish Up, an organization that combats hunger in Mecklenburg County through food banks, grocery delivery and the meals on wheels program, served 164,000 people in 2024 alone.
—Rebecca Noel, Charlotte Observer, 30 Oct. 2025
The Joint Terrorism Task Force is a federal law enforcement organization that combats both domestic and international terrorism.
—Solcyré Burga, Time, 2 Oct. 2025
Becca Israel, director of the Nexus Project, a nonprofit that combats antisemitism and promotes democracy, said the administration's actions send conflicting messages.
—Jason Derose, NPR, 17 Sep. 2025
Lately Rigel has seen big sales increases for a few of its drugs, notably Tavelisse, which combats a condition in which the body’s immune system attacks its own blood platelets.
—John Dorfman, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025
Ant International claims the platform combats hallucinations and other data risks by using over 100 recognition models and 600,000 risk lexicons.
—Lionel Lim, Fortune, 13 Aug. 2025
Fox combats his symptoms, such as paralysis of his facial muscles, through medication and trains to preserve his ambulatory skills.
—Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 13 Aug. 2025
Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Verb
Jasmine Crowe-Houston is the founder of Goodr, an organization that regularly combats food waste by collaborating with businesses, foundations, governments, and sports teams to provide high-quality food to local communities.
—Ronny Maye, Essence, 31 Oct. 2025
Nourish Up, an organization that combats hunger in Mecklenburg County through food banks, grocery delivery and the meals on wheels program, served 164,000 people in 2024 alone.
—Rebecca Noel, Charlotte Observer, 30 Oct. 2025
The Joint Terrorism Task Force is a federal law enforcement organization that combats both domestic and international terrorism.
—Solcyré Burga, Time, 2 Oct. 2025
Becca Israel, director of the Nexus Project, a nonprofit that combats antisemitism and promotes democracy, said the administration's actions send conflicting messages.
—Jason Derose, NPR, 17 Sep. 2025
Lately Rigel has seen big sales increases for a few of its drugs, notably Tavelisse, which combats a condition in which the body’s immune system attacks its own blood platelets.
—John Dorfman, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025
Ant International claims the platform combats hallucinations and other data risks by using over 100 recognition models and 600,000 risk lexicons.
—Lionel Lim, Fortune, 13 Aug. 2025
Fox combats his symptoms, such as paralysis of his facial muscles, through medication and trains to preserve his ambulatory skills.
—Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 13 Aug. 2025
Noun
This proactive boundary setting manages stakeholder expectations, combats scope creep and forces ruthless focus on the absolute core, driving true agility over bloat.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for combats
Verb
-
And the action ranges from dueling card tricks to the kind of honest-to-God fights that merely serve to remind us that balletic action films really are magic tricks.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
11 Nov. 2025
-
The movie, about a pop girl group called HUNTR/X that fights demons, was a smash hit.—
Julia Gomez,
USA Today,
11 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The case centers on a directive to use $4 billion from an alternative fund to pay November SNAP benefits in full—a move the administration opposes.—
Hannah Parry,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Nov. 2025
-
The Sports Betting Alliance, representing companies like Draft Kings and FanDuel, opposes the bill's revenue-sharing model.—
Frank Vaisvilas,
jsonline.com,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
In some cases, actions of the British armed forces have been described as unjustified.—
Eduardo Tansley,
New York Times,
8 Nov. 2025
-
Majumdar lavishes her characters with careful attention, and so the reader comes to regard their most troubling actions as justified, if not inevitable.—
Tope Folarin,
The Atlantic,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
David Wolf, the executive director of the Legacy of the Plains Museum in Scottsbluff, said experts estimate that as many 10 people died for every mile of the trail ‒ perhaps as many as 20,000 travelers, plus an unknown number of Native Americans killed during skirmishes.—
Trevor Hughes,
USA Today,
3 Nov. 2025
-
Amid the skirmishes that ensued, federal agents fired a chemical agent toward a protester at near-point-blank range, and security personnel later opened fire on a U-Haul truck that had backed up toward a barrier on the island’s bridge, injuring the driver and an apparent bystander.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
26 Oct. 2025
Noun
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At the same time, food aid was delayed for tens of millions of people as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits were caught up in legal battles related to the shutdown.—
Orianna Rosa Royle,
Fortune,
10 Nov. 2025
-
River Raisin National Battlefield Park in Monroe honors the history of the January 1813 battles of the War of 1812 and their aftermath.—
Jenna Prestininzi,
Freep.com,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Dockery is often called the birthplace of the Delta blues, where workers toiled in the hot fields by day and sang songs of joy, pain and hope at night.—
USA Today,
USA Today,
10 Nov. 2025
-
Meanwhile, collaborations are proving to be their go-to formula to experimenting in different fields.—
Sandra Salibian,
Footwear News,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Since Assad’s ousting, Syria has seen flare-ups of deadly sectarian violence, with clashes erupting between security forces and those loyal to the former president, including in Syria’s coastal Latakia region in March.—
Sophie Tanno,
CNN Money,
9 Nov. 2025
-
As for South Sudan, a senior United Nations official said earlier this week that the ongoing conflict in Sudan is causing destabilization in South Sudan, including armed clashes and food insecurity.—
Dan Gooding,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Few crosstown rivalries can compare to the one Hingham and Notre Dame Academy have developed the past few decades.—
Brendan Connelly,
Boston Herald,
8 Nov. 2025
-
The history of contemporary music is littered with hundreds of rivalries both amicable and otherwise.—
Jason Newman,
Rolling Stone,
7 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Combats.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/combats. Accessed 1 Dec. 2025.
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