as in complaint
a court case brought against the plaintiff of another court case by the defendant
The defendant filed a counterclaim for his own injuries, claiming that he only rear-ended the plaintiff because she had stopped too fast.
Related Words
Relevance
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 counterclaim
An April 20 court order obtained by PEOPLE said that, given the bankruptcy filing and ARC's inability to file a counterclaim, Hardee's lawsuit is paused.
—
Chiara Kim, PEOPLE, 22 Apr. 2026
Their arguments are now moving forward as counterclaims under the umbrella of the QBE lawsuit.
—Tess Riski
april 14, Miami Herald, 14 Apr. 2026
Perhaps more importantly, CAA’s counterclaims accusing the agents of stealing trade secrets on their way out and starting a rival agency that masquerades as a management firm were rejected.
—Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 8 Apr. 2026
The other focused on counterclaims.
—Jon Wilner, Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for counterclaim
Chiara Kim, PEOPLE, 22 Apr. 2026
Their arguments are now moving forward as counterclaims under the umbrella of the QBE lawsuit.
—Tess Riski
april 14, Miami Herald, 14 Apr. 2026
Perhaps more importantly, CAA’s counterclaims accusing the agents of stealing trade secrets on their way out and starting a rival agency that masquerades as a management firm were rejected.
—Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 8 Apr. 2026
The other focused on counterclaims.
—Jon Wilner, Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for counterclaim
Recent Examples of Synonyms for counterclaim
Noun
-
The couple was last seen together on surveillance footage at a Beaver Dam Kwik Trip on March 29, 2025, according to a criminal complaint cited by WISC.—
Angelique Brenes,
PEOPLE,
20 May 2026
-
Last week, The Charlotte Observer reported on complaints from some who had to sleep on those bunks.—
Ryan Oehrli,
Charlotte Observer,
19 May 2026
Noun
-
That lawsuit was dismissed in December.—
Mark Puleo,
New York Times,
17 May 2026
-
In recent years, a few prominent detransitioners, including Chloe Cole and Prisha Mosley, have advocated for restrictions on transition care for minors, arguing in lawsuits against doctors who treated them that their care was too easy to access and that doctors failed them.—
Jo Yurcaba,
NBC news,
16 May 2026
Noun
-
Construction at the site has remained unfinished since mid-2023, with an arbitration panel ruling in October 2025 to set a future hearing date for litigation for this September.—
Claire Murphy,
Chicago Tribune,
14 May 2026
-
In Thursday’s order, Mai noted the unusually extensive record developed over nearly three decades of litigation and said the state could not meet the high constitutional standard required to deny bail in a capital case.—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
14 May 2026
Noun
-
Baldoni denied the allegations and later filed a $400 million defamation countersuit against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, publicist Leslie Sloane and The New York Times.—
Elizabeth Rosner,
PEOPLE,
8 May 2026
-
That countersuit was later dismissed.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
7 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Counterclaim.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/counterclaim. Accessed 22 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
