as in defendant
a person who takes part in a dispute
there were only three disputants in the argument, but they made enough noise for a dozen
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Recent Examples of disputant
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
However, if the harassment or dispute is simply two neighbors being un-neighborly toward each other, the HOA’s best response may be to offer a volunteer board member to meet with the disputants to try to host a discussion between them.
—Kelly G. Richardson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Feb. 2025
My disputant’s particular problem wasn’t with Carpenter’s voice but with its anodyne middle-of-the-road context (both musically and culturally).
—Wesley Stace, WSJ, 20 Dec. 2018
The debate over medicine today is like that baby, but with disputants who won’t fall for Solomon’s trick.
—Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry, National Review, 24 Oct. 2017
One way for other financial centres, such as Dubai and Singapore, to compete is by becoming hubs for arbitration—by agreeing to abide by the decision of a tribunal, disputants can bypass courts entirely.
—The Economist, 31 Aug. 2017
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
However, if the harassment or dispute is simply two neighbors being un-neighborly toward each other, the HOA’s best response may be to offer a volunteer board member to meet with the disputants to try to host a discussion between them.
—Kelly G. Richardson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Feb. 2025
My disputant’s particular problem wasn’t with Carpenter’s voice but with its anodyne middle-of-the-road context (both musically and culturally).
—Wesley Stace, WSJ, 20 Dec. 2018
The debate over medicine today is like that baby, but with disputants who won’t fall for Solomon’s trick.
—Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry, National Review, 24 Oct. 2017
One way for other financial centres, such as Dubai and Singapore, to compete is by becoming hubs for arbitration—by agreeing to abide by the decision of a tribunal, disputants can bypass courts entirely.
—The Economist, 31 Aug. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disputant
Noun
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In minor cases, a defendant can sometimes choose to self-deport instead of facing prosecution.—
Landon Mion,
FOXNews.com,
22 Jan. 2026
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The Justice Department's NCAA basketball gambling investigation required nearly two years to fully uncover, spanning 26 criminal defendants.—
Scott MacFarlane,
CBS News,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The trial will also serve as a test case to see what damages, if any, may be awarded to plaintiffs, said Clay Calvert, a nonresident senior fellow of technology policy studies at the nonpartisan American Enterprise Institute.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
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The plaintiffs are seeking monetary damages as well as changes to the way social media apps are designed.—
Shannon Bond,
NPR,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
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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
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The fraud debaters offer many preferred litmus tests.—
David Canfield,
HollywoodReporter,
14 Dec. 2025
Noun
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What the bill faces Critics also allude to former MMA fighters accusing UFC of antitrust violations.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Partisan resistance fighters in WWII, civilians or former military members who were not part of the regular armed forces of the Allies, used guerilla tactics to fight Nazis behind enemy lines.—
Liz Rothaus Bertrand,
Charlotte Observer,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
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However, this classification could change if reality television contestants are treated as employees in the future.—
John Perlstein,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
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As viewers at home debate which celebrity contestant has the best strategy, the streamer has released a statement reminding audiences to be kind.—
Armando Tinoco,
Deadline,
24 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Montoya Sanchez said the protest was organized internally by the families exhausted by the long detention and conditions that advocates say have included food with worms, constant illness and insufficient medical access.—
Valerie Gonzalez,
Twin Cities,
25 Jan. 2026
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Colorado Parks and Wildlife employees are in the crosshairs, caught between mountain lion lovers on the left and anti-wolf advocates on the right.—
The Denver Post Editorial Board,
Denver Post,
24 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Disputant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disputant. Accessed 29 Jan. 2026.
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