as in aggressive
feeling or displaying eagerness to fight
her confrontational, in-your-face manner doesn't help get legislation passed
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Recent Examples of confrontational
The arrest took place after the reality star apparently spent the days prior sharing a series of increasingly confrontational posts to her Instagram, which allegedly doxxed her friends and family members.
—
Nicholas Rice, PEOPLE, 7 Sep. 2025
This is the polar opposite of, say, a project designed to be controversial, confrontational and put TIFF on the defensive.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 5 Sep. 2025
Instead of a confrontational regional environment characterized by periodic attacks against Iran and Iranian retaliation, a new agreement could bring greater stability and predictability.
—Robert J. Einhorn, Foreign Affairs, 29 Aug. 2025
Jones predicted Whitmer and Shapiro may eventually join the fray if the confrontational approach proves successful.
—Samantha-Jo Roth, The Washington Examiner, 27 Aug. 2025
In a few short years, my plaintive, pleading tone would seem awkward and apologetic, compared to the confrontational calls on campuses for a free Palestine from the river to the sea, or Kneecap’s concert criticisms.
—Philip Metres
august 27, Literary Hub, 27 Aug. 2025
Real World alum and life coach Kelley Wolf has been arrested in Utah after making several confrontational and insulting social media posts about family members and friends, including her estranged husband, the actor Scott Wolf, with whom she's embroiled in a contentious divorce.
—Shania Russell, EW.com, 27 Aug. 2025
Over the past few days, she's been sharing a series of increasingly confrontational posts, aimed at doxxing friends and family members — including Scott, 57 — while also posting a stream of insults and allegations against them.
—Dave Quinn, People.com, 27 Aug. 2025
Guiducci arrives at a moment when some of that anger has subsided, and the punch-drunk culture seems counterintuitively eager to escape into nostalgia and tastemaking, splashy profiles, and — just sometimes — confrontational journalism.
—Max Tani, semafor.com, 25 Aug. 2025
Nicholas Rice, PEOPLE, 7 Sep. 2025
This is the polar opposite of, say, a project designed to be controversial, confrontational and put TIFF on the defensive.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 5 Sep. 2025
Instead of a confrontational regional environment characterized by periodic attacks against Iran and Iranian retaliation, a new agreement could bring greater stability and predictability.
—Robert J. Einhorn, Foreign Affairs, 29 Aug. 2025
Jones predicted Whitmer and Shapiro may eventually join the fray if the confrontational approach proves successful.
—Samantha-Jo Roth, The Washington Examiner, 27 Aug. 2025
In a few short years, my plaintive, pleading tone would seem awkward and apologetic, compared to the confrontational calls on campuses for a free Palestine from the river to the sea, or Kneecap’s concert criticisms.
—Philip Metres
august 27, Literary Hub, 27 Aug. 2025
Real World alum and life coach Kelley Wolf has been arrested in Utah after making several confrontational and insulting social media posts about family members and friends, including her estranged husband, the actor Scott Wolf, with whom she's embroiled in a contentious divorce.
—Shania Russell, EW.com, 27 Aug. 2025
Over the past few days, she's been sharing a series of increasingly confrontational posts, aimed at doxxing friends and family members — including Scott, 57 — while also posting a stream of insults and allegations against them.
—Dave Quinn, People.com, 27 Aug. 2025
Guiducci arrives at a moment when some of that anger has subsided, and the punch-drunk culture seems counterintuitively eager to escape into nostalgia and tastemaking, splashy profiles, and — just sometimes — confrontational journalism.
—Max Tani, semafor.com, 25 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for confrontational
Adjective
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Mid-summer changes to United’s revolving credit facility indicated a switch in strategy, and there was a more aggressive approach in the market following a summit in Iceland between Sir Jim Ratcliffe, chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox.—
James McNicholas,
New York Times,
8 Sep. 2025
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The occurrences grew more aggressive over time, with the Smurls' 75-pound German shepherd getting slammed into a wall and Jack getting attacked while praying.—
Jessica Sager,
PEOPLE,
7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Jeffrey Breinholt, an architect of the material support statutes who spent three decades as a federal terrorism prosecutor, defends the laws as crucial to closing loopholes that were exploited by foreign militant groups and their domestic sympathizers.—
Hannah Allam,
ProPublica,
10 Sep. 2025
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Lellouche stars as unlikely hero Zem, a disillusioned Zone 3 cop with an idealistic militant past, who is teamed with haughty, high-flying Zone 2 officer Salia, played by Adèle Exarchopoulos, after a leading politician is assassinated in Zone 1.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Thanks to climate change, Cosmism’s ambivalent and generally hostile attitude towards the natural world should also sound familiar.—
Tim Brinkhof,
Big Think,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Another camera designed to withstand the hostile environment of space was used outside.—
Catherine Muccigrosso,
Charlotte Observer,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The contentious issue, which was regarded as a momentous turning point when it was adopted by the European Union in 2023, has been a hot topic at the IAA Mobility auto show in Munich this week.—
Sam Meredith,
CNBC,
10 Sep. 2025
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One of those was his contentious divorce with his first wife Denise Richards.—
Lea Veloso,
StyleCaster,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Some aspects of playing right-back suit Wieffer’s combative instincts.—
Andy Naylor,
New York Times,
8 Sep. 2025
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Kennedy appears combative during testimony The three-hour hearing quickly became combative as Kennedy defended his time as HHS secretary amid a flurry of questions on his staffing shakeups, vaccine changes and other issues.—
Will McDuffie,
ABC News,
4 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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But attorney Gabi Silver, who previously represented one of the men in the original case before Hartig, said the judge made the appropriate call for a low-level, non-assaultive felony case against a client with no prior criminal record.—
Darcie Moran,
Freep.com,
30 Aug. 2025
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The record indicates that the instant offense has elements of brutality, violence, assaultive behavior or conscious selection of victim's vulnerability indicating a conscious disregard for the lives, safety, or property of others, such that the offender poses a continuing threat to public safety.—
Ron Estes,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Confrontational.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/confrontational. Accessed 13 Sep. 2025.
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