1
as in candidate
one who seeks an office, honor, position, or award
a strong contender for the mayoral position
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in competitor
one who strives for the same thing as another
several contenders competing for the title of the city's best Italian restaurant
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of contender
Does Waddle make the Broncos Super Bowl contenders?
—
Ted Nguyen, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026
Her performance already has people predicting her as a strong contender for the Emmys.
—Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 25 Mar. 2026
Get to know all of those local contenders here.
—Hannah Kirby, jsonline.com, 25 Mar. 2026
The league is expected to grow to eight teams in 2027, with Arizona being a prime contender for one of the new franchises.
—ABC News, 25 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for contender
Ted Nguyen, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026
Her performance already has people predicting her as a strong contender for the Emmys.
—Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 25 Mar. 2026
Get to know all of those local contenders here.
—Hannah Kirby, jsonline.com, 25 Mar. 2026
The league is expected to grow to eight teams in 2027, with Arizona being a prime contender for one of the new franchises.
—ABC News, 25 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for contender
Recent Examples of Synonyms for contender
Noun
-
Stand With Crypto, the advocacy group that helped shepherd pro-cryptocurrency candidates into Congress last election cycle, is making its first foray into this year’s midterms.—
Eleanor Mueller,
semafor.com,
26 Mar. 2026
-
There are 10 candidates in the contest, eight Democrats and two Republicans.—
Barnini Chakraborty,
The Washington Examiner,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Despite initial skepticism, the Mach-E has become a strong competitor in the performance EV segment.—
Charles Singh,
USA Today,
23 Mar. 2026
-
The measure was designed to help institutions prepare for revenue-sharing tied to the House settlement and to keep pace with competitors in other states.—
Garrett Shanley,
Miami Herald,
23 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
During the call, the producers reminded the contestants that they are bound by their one-year contracts.—
Rebecca Keegan,
NBC news,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Martinez entered our lives back in 2012 as a contestant on season 3 of The Voice.—
Lars Brandle,
Billboard,
27 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Next up is a matchup with Big Ten rival Iowa in the Elite 8 on Saturday.—
Ryan Baker,
CBS News,
28 Mar. 2026
-
The alternative option required a bit of help from the Minnesota Twins — their American League Central rivals.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
28 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Speakers call for Democratic challengers While Saturday’s signs took wide aim, the messages coming from the event’s speakers were decidedly local.—
Mark Dee,
Idaho Statesman,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Gromlich described Louisiana’s 4th District as a heavily Republican area that has not had a Democratic challenger in recent election cycles.—
Arizona Republic,
AZCentral.com,
28 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Contender.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/contender. Accessed 29 Mar. 2026.
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