contended

verb

past tense of contend
1
as in competed
to engage in a contest two traditional rivals contending for the championship

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in argued
to state (something) as a reason in support of or against something under consideration contended that the senator's considerable experience made him the best candidate

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in insisted
to state as a fact usually forcefully contended that his opponent was wrong about practically everything

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 contended Prosecutors have contended that Sanon was more than an unwitting political hopeful. — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 14 Oct. 2026 Belgal's attorneys contended ICE agents arrested Belgal without a warrant. — ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026 Sweeping as its powers were, Kanji contended, DHS could not override a sovereign government. — Ryan Devereaux, ProPublica, 10 Oct. 2026 Some Democrats contended that the Justice Department greenlit the deal for political reasons, while warning that the Ellisons would steer CNN news coverage in a direction friendlier for the president. — Ted Johnson, Deadline, 6 Oct. 2026 Blacknell contended that four different medical professionals treated Linton after the crash and none of them concluded the wreck was tied to a bipolar episode. — James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026 The business contended that the statute was vague and said that handwashing would qualify as a medical action under the act, according to the judge’s order. — Idaho Statesman, 23 Sep. 2026 At their joint trial, prosecutors contended that Merritt encouraged Fattore to kill Caleb and Bridget. — Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 22 Sep. 2026 Penn State regularly contended for New Year’s Six bowls but lost the close, important games so often that fans braced for heartbreak. — The Athletic College Football Staff, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for contended
  1. competed
  2. argued
  3. insisted
  4. fought
  5. reasoned
  6. claimed
  7. raced
  8. asserted
Verb
  • Amber Siyavus, who competed on Season 8 of Big Brother, has died, the Clark County medical examiner in Nevada confirmed to Deadline.
    — Denise Petski, Deadline, 12 Oct. 2026
  • Caleb Flynn, a pastor who competed on American Idol season 12, has been sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole for murdering his wife, Ashley Flynn, AP News reports.
    — Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of competed
Verb
  • When people have little relief from stress in a chaotic environment, their brains have difficulty coping with the ongoing prediction errors, Friston, McEwen and neuroscientist Achim Peters argued in a 2017 article.
    — Maia Szalavitz, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Consumer advocates have argued that digital labels could eventually be used for surge pricing or personalized pricing.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of argued
Verb
  • Busfield, who has insisted be was innocent of the charges, was released from custody pending trial.
    — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Roberts insisted that the works were real and that the the Warhol Foundation had said as much to him.
    — Alex Greenberger, ARTnews.com, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of insisted
Verb
  • In contrast, the ad says Desmond fought to lower costs and supports suspending the gas tax.
    — Kevin Freking, Fortune, 17 Oct. 2026
  • In the case of Yemen, the ground fighters inside the country who are taking on the Houthis are deeply divided and fought each other as recently as January.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of fought
Verb
  • This line of defense didn’t persuade Sweeney, who reasoned that adding athletes with expired eligibility would mean more, not less, market competition.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 13 Oct. 2026
  • From there, Saucedo reasoned Ruth right out of existence, consigning him to the same category as Bigfoot, a figment of the collective unconscious.
    — Rich Cohen, Air Mail, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of reasoned
Verb
  • There are believed to be two adult owls, and some photographers have claimed to have seen six fledglings, Barrett added.
    — JOSEPH FREDERICK, Arkansas Online, 17 Oct. 2026
  • The fake message, shared alongside images of Fox and an older photograph of the former couple, claimed Kelly was devastated by the breakup and blamed himself for losing her.
    — Danielle Minnetian, FOXNews.com, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of claimed
Verb
  • Quarterback Cale Hellums ran for 195 yards and five touchdowns and Army raced past Florida Atlantic 56-24 on Saturday.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026
  • The Jayhawks, who raced to an early 17-7 lead and held a six-point lead in the third quarter, ultimately dropped a 35-24 decision to the Wildcats on Saturday at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.
    — Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of raced
Verb
  • In a debate earlier this week, Bass highlighted her accomplishments in paving the way for new affordable housing, while Raman asserted that housing production is still lagging and Bass isn’t doing enough.
    — Jack Flemming, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The company generally denied the allegations and asserted that any damages should be apportioned among the parties and other potentially responsible parties.
    — Patrick Danner, San Antonio Express-News, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of asserted

Browse Nearby Words

contend
contended
contended (with)
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Contended.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/contended. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of compunction

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All