as in skirmishes
a physical dispute between opposing individuals or groups
he came home with a black eye from the dustup at the bar
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Recent Examples of dustups
The second half ground almost to a halt with a few minor dustups for fouls and arguments.
—
Braidon Nourse, Denver Post, 15 Apr. 2026
To Washington, the dustups are the sort of tough love the continent needs.
—Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 21 Feb. 2026
While the midair dustups are trending down after the Federal Aviation Administration adopted a zero-tolerance policy and increased fines almost five years ago, the incidents will end up close to double the three-year average before the pandemic.
—Thomas Black, Twin Cities, 21 Dec. 2025
Prior to the dustups with NBCU and TelevisaUnivision, YouTube TV had nearly blacked out Paramount and Fox networks, reaching deals with both media companies after tensions spilled into public view.
—Dade Hayes, Deadline, 30 Sep. 2025
And the headline bombshells continue in the who-did-what-when mortgage dustups.
—Susan Tompor, USA Today, 24 Sep. 2025
And the headline bombshells continue in the who-did-what-when mortgage dustups.
—Susan Tompor, Freep.com, 17 Sep. 2025
He and Raiders coach Pete Carroll intervened to keep a couple of dustups from turning into fights, including on special teams.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 14 Aug. 2025
Braidon Nourse, Denver Post, 15 Apr. 2026
To Washington, the dustups are the sort of tough love the continent needs.
—Christian Edwards, CNN Money, 21 Feb. 2026
While the midair dustups are trending down after the Federal Aviation Administration adopted a zero-tolerance policy and increased fines almost five years ago, the incidents will end up close to double the three-year average before the pandemic.
—Thomas Black, Twin Cities, 21 Dec. 2025
Prior to the dustups with NBCU and TelevisaUnivision, YouTube TV had nearly blacked out Paramount and Fox networks, reaching deals with both media companies after tensions spilled into public view.
—Dade Hayes, Deadline, 30 Sep. 2025
And the headline bombshells continue in the who-did-what-when mortgage dustups.
—Susan Tompor, USA Today, 24 Sep. 2025
And the headline bombshells continue in the who-did-what-when mortgage dustups.
—Susan Tompor, Freep.com, 17 Sep. 2025
He and Raiders coach Pete Carroll intervened to keep a couple of dustups from turning into fights, including on special teams.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 14 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dustups
Noun
-
Inconspicuous blows against Denver escalated to skirmishes.—
Joel Lorenzi,
New York Times,
31 May 2026
-
Thankfully, none of these skirmishes affects the guests’ satisfaction with the trip.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
26 May 2026
Noun
-
Outside the facility’s gates, there have been clashes between federal immigration officials and demonstrators.—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
1 June 2026
-
Days of protests outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Newark, New Jersey, have led to clashes between demonstrators and officers and a handful of arrests.—
Chris Boyette,
CNN Money,
1 June 2026
Noun
-
Unlike so many iconic American fights, held in the halls of Congress or on the streets of major cities, this campaign is being waged for the most part in obscurity.—
Jonathan Blitzer,
New Yorker,
7 June 2026
-
This year, the event was more spread out in downtown Lee’s Summit, with the fights concentrated in the entrance to the festival area.—
Eleanor Nash,
Kansas City Star,
7 June 2026
Noun
-
Staal’s still elite at winning defensive zone puck battles, which helps tee up Ehlers to play to his strengths and gives the Canes an all-three-zone impact in their minutes that has added up to a 66 percent xG rate.—
Shayna Goldman,
New York Times,
2 June 2026
-
Calvert shares similar views and has survived an ethics complaint and two previous redistricting battles during his 33 years in Congress.—
Terry Collins,
USA Today,
2 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Dustups.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dustups. Accessed 8 Jun. 2026.
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