as in rivalry
an earnest effort for superiority or victory over another
the softball rivals met in an epic confrontation on the last weekend of the summer
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Recent Examples of confrontation
In 2022, Pelosi was at the center of a confrontation between the United States and China.
—
Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 7 Nov. 2025
Macfadyen’s Guiteau is an obvious charlatan; a man so easy to peg as a bad seed that a bank manager remembers him from a single confrontation five years earlier.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 6 Nov. 2025
In that case, police shot and killed a woman following a pursuit that ended in a crash and confrontation on southbound state Route 163 near Interstate 15 in the Miramar area.
—Karen Kucher, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Nov. 2025
Several Miss Universe contestants walked out of a pre-pageant event following a tense confrontation on Tuesday.
—Vivian Kwarm, Mercury News, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for confrontation
Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 7 Nov. 2025
Macfadyen’s Guiteau is an obvious charlatan; a man so easy to peg as a bad seed that a bank manager remembers him from a single confrontation five years earlier.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 6 Nov. 2025
In that case, police shot and killed a woman following a pursuit that ended in a crash and confrontation on southbound state Route 163 near Interstate 15 in the Miramar area.
—Karen Kucher, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Nov. 2025
Several Miss Universe contestants walked out of a pre-pageant event following a tense confrontation on Tuesday.
—Vivian Kwarm, Mercury News, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for confrontation
Recent Examples of Synonyms for confrontation
Noun
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In recent decades, Thailand and Cambodia have had a complicated relationship of both cooperation and rivalry.—
Helen Regan,
CNN Money,
11 Nov. 2025
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The Fighting Irish have absolutely dominated the rivalry in recent years, taking down the Panthers with a 58-7 final score in 2023 and a 45-3 final score in 2020.—
Matt Audilet,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
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History buffs should head to Saratoga National Historic Park, which was the site of two pivotal Revolutionary War battles.—
Cat Sposato,
Travel + Leisure,
4 Nov. 2025
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What began as a grassroots open-records request has now branched into a multifront legal battle.—
Kaelan Deese,
The Washington Examiner,
4 Nov. 2025
Noun
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From its beginning, the leaders of the rebellion well understood the global reach and resonance of their great struggle.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
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The historic build-up stands in stark contrast to the United States’ own supply struggles.—
Tamara Qiblawi,
CNN Money,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Starbucks has also come under intense competition from the surging popularity of tea drinks chains like Mixue Bingcheng, ChaGee and HeyTea.—
John Liu,
CNN Money,
5 Nov. 2025
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Several banks lowered their price targets following the earnings report, pointing to increasing competition from larger social platforms like Instagram and TikTok and concerns over macro headwinds.—
Jaures Yip,
CNBC,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
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The return from injury of Gravenberch, who won six of his eight duels, was another welcome sight, along with Alexis Mac Allister completing 90 minutes for Liverpool for the first time since April.—
James Pearce,
New York Times,
2 Nov. 2025
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Much like the classic Tom Brady-Peyton Manning duels of old, the quarterback matchup between Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen — the two current MVP frontrunners — is can’t-miss television.—
Pete Sweeney,
Kansas City Star,
30 Oct. 2025
Noun
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As is often the case when Arsenal and Chelsea meet, this match had the potential to be one of those gloriously uninhibited conflicts.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
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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
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European allies accuse Russia of waging a campaign of hybrid warfare against them, of which the disruptive airspace violations are a part, along with sabotage plots, cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns, and more.—
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Nov. 2025
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Developed for the Swedish Navy and aligned with NATO interoperability standards, the A26 is engineered for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), as well as long-range precision strikes and seabed warfare.—
Kapil Kajal,
Interesting Engineering,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Just a few months ago, McKenna was weighing the two schools against each other, the Spartans finishing as runners-up in his historic recruiting war.—
Scott Wheeler,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
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From the very first days of the First World War, the German Empire was looking for someone capable of sparking a revolution in Russia and forcing the country to withdraw from the war with Germany — so that the Germans could focus their forces on fighting the British and the French.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
8 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Confrontation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/confrontation. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.
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