as in disputant
a person who takes part in a dispute
the debater was unable to come up with a convincing rebuttal for his opponent's argument
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Recent Examples of debater
High school debaters are much more polite and reasonable, even compared to presidential candidates, the group’s president, Walt Breitinger, observed.
—
Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2026
Judging simply by the crowd’s response, the debaters arguing that CSOs remain relevant won handily.
—Justin Worland, Time, 20 Feb. 2026
Dylan Black, a SDA freshman who took the pilot course this year, said the class allowed students to learn more about each other and also become better debaters and thinkers.
—Karen Billing, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Jan. 2026
The fraud debaters offer many preferred litmus tests.
—David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 14 Dec. 2025
The college boys would gather around a charpoy set in front of the food stall, playing for cups of tea or plates of biscuits, contemplating the next move with the seriousness of parliamentary debaters, discussing strategy.
—Daniyal Mueenuddin, New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2025
Curtis and Kirk were indeed to be found on opposite ends of virtually every hot-button cultural issue on which the latter made his name as a debater and provocateur.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
Her debaters warned of a slippery slope.
—Abby McCloskey, Twin Cities, 29 Oct. 2025
Kirk became known as a fierce ― and controversial ― debater.
—Natalie Eilbert, jsonline.com, 14 Sep. 2025
Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2026
Judging simply by the crowd’s response, the debaters arguing that CSOs remain relevant won handily.
—Justin Worland, Time, 20 Feb. 2026
Dylan Black, a SDA freshman who took the pilot course this year, said the class allowed students to learn more about each other and also become better debaters and thinkers.
—Karen Billing, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Jan. 2026
The fraud debaters offer many preferred litmus tests.
—David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 14 Dec. 2025
The college boys would gather around a charpoy set in front of the food stall, playing for cups of tea or plates of biscuits, contemplating the next move with the seriousness of parliamentary debaters, discussing strategy.
—Daniyal Mueenuddin, New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2025
Curtis and Kirk were indeed to be found on opposite ends of virtually every hot-button cultural issue on which the latter made his name as a debater and provocateur.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
Her debaters warned of a slippery slope.
—Abby McCloskey, Twin Cities, 29 Oct. 2025
Kirk became known as a fierce ― and controversial ― debater.
—Natalie Eilbert, jsonline.com, 14 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for debater
Noun
-
The Jay Treaty asked the disputants merely to start a process leading to the appointment of arbitrators qualified to decide their disputes fairly and finally.—
Tom Bell,
Oc Register,
12 Apr. 2025
-
The audience and actor are like disputants kept in different rooms, forbidden to see each other fully.—
Jesse Green,
New York Times,
28 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
All three co-defendants have pleaded not guilty in their cases.—
Julia Coin,
Charlotte Observer,
26 Mar. 2026
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One morning, Amber Lowrey, the sister of a defendant named Savanna Batten, showed up early after dropping her kids off at school.—
Rachel Monroe,
New Yorker,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
But even if the plaintiffs are victorious, there’s no clear road ahead for how damages will be assessed.—
Kate Nishimura,
Sourcing Journal,
24 Mar. 2026
-
ProPublica and the Tennessee Lookout previously reported how, after creating the new type of payday loan, Advance has gone on to sue more than 110,000 Tennesseans, making the company one of the single largest plaintiffs in the state.—
ProPublica,
ProPublica,
24 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The first obstacle for the marines would be getting their ships—which would be carrying combat troops, helicopters, fighter jets, and amphibious assault vehicles—to successfully land on the islands.—
Sudarsan Raghavan,
New Yorker,
25 Mar. 2026
-
The 48-year-old business owner and former MMA fighter has been known to work across the aisle and has strong relationships with some Democrats, which Heinrich and Fetterman have cited for their support.—
Kaia Hubbard,
CBS News,
24 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
-
And these unlikely advocates are determined to use their voices for good.—
Lauren Clark,
CBS News,
29 Mar. 2026
-
The underlying facts of the case are still to be ruled on, but the partial ruling on Friday was a big win for immigration advocates who had been fighting to shut down the controversial site.—
Claire Heddles,
Miami Herald,
28 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The Rangers have other outfielders in camp, including veterans Sam Haggerty, a switch-hitter who is very good from the right side against lefties, Mark Canha and fellow scrapper Michael Helman.—
Evan Grant,
Dallas Morning News,
20 Feb. 2026
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But Everton, during that period, were little more than relegation scrappers, thanks to two significant points deductions in Dyche’s two seasons at the club.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
11 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Paul returned to the ring in June against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, son of the legendary Mexican brawler.—
Erik Pedersen,
Deadline,
3 Nov. 2025
-
The episodes saw 12 brawlers face off in teams led by Flay, Maneet Chauhan and Antonia Lofaso, aiming to win over judges Williamson, Carson Kressley and Rodney Scott.—
Erin Clements,
PEOPLE,
29 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Debater.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/debater. Accessed 30 Mar. 2026.
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