as in rivalry
an earnest effort for superiority or victory over another
the annual fall face-off between these traditional rivals is a big event for both football-mad colleges
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Recent Examples of face-off
Alejandro Avila Outkick, FOXNews.com, 8 May 2026
Thurmond did not meet the polling threshold to qualify for Tuesday’s debate or an NBC/Telemundo face-off taking place on Wednesday.
—Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 6 May 2026
Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026
Washington Spirit 1, Pachuca 0 The Spirit and Pachuca faced off later Wednesday at the same venue in a semifinal that was lukewarm by comparison.
—Tamerra Griffin, New York Times, 22 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for face-off
Noun
All hell broke loose at Thursday's press conference when Khamzat Chimaev and firebrand Sean Strickland nearly turned a routine face-off into a street fight.
—Alejandro Avila Outkick, FOXNews.com, 8 May 2026
Thurmond did not meet the polling threshold to qualify for Tuesday’s debate or an NBC/Telemundo face-off taking place on Wednesday.
—Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 6 May 2026
Verb
Bounty hunters facing off, nearly invincible against normal bad guys, but hard-pressed in an even match.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026
Washington Spirit 1, Pachuca 0 The Spirit and Pachuca faced off later Wednesday at the same venue in a semifinal that was lukewarm by comparison.
—Tamerra Griffin, New York Times, 22 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for face-off
Recent Examples of Synonyms for face-off
Noun
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By beginning with 2018, the data isolates a period in which the Chevrolet-Honda rivalry remained important, while the fundamental aerodynamic platform was more consistent across the field.—
Giovanni Malloy,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2026
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The moment capped a chaotic rivalry game between the reigning Open Division champions and a Kennedy team that was pushing for an upset, with defensive miscues helping shape the late innings for both sides.—
Ethan Hanson,
Daily News,
23 May 2026
Verb
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On Sunday, May 24, Kyle's wife, Samantha Busch, and their children — son Brexton, 11, and daughter Lennix, 4 — made an emotional appearance at the Charlotte Motor Speedway for the Coca-Cola 600, in which Kyle was supposed to compete before his death at age 41 on May 21.—
Charlotte Phillipp,
PEOPLE,
25 May 2026
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James Tarkowski and Michael Keane have signed new deals this season and will compete with Branthwaite and O’Brien for minutes.—
Patrick Boyland,
New York Times,
25 May 2026
Noun
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Decades-long legal battle The Supreme Court decision to overturn Glossip’s conviction and death sentence last year marked a major turning point in his decades-long legal battle.—
Linh Tran,
CNN Money,
14 May 2026
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But the frenzied redistricting battle of the past few months — including a congressional map in his home state thrown out by a court after people voted to approve it, and certain elections postponed in Louisiana and Alabama after mail ballots already went out — has done it.—
Miles Parks,
NPR,
14 May 2026
Verb
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Google contends that none of these bypasses actually work.—
Lee Hutchinson,
ArsTechnica,
19 May 2026
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That so many exceptional shots came from Rai, a 31-year-old who had never so much as contended in a major, is irrelevant.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
19 May 2026
Noun
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But Angels manager Kurt Suzuki is proud of his team’s effort in what was a pitcher’s duel.—
Joaquin Ruiz,
Los Angeles Times,
25 May 2026
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The game was a pitchers’ duel until the Eagles (17-12) broke a scoreless tie with four runs in the fourth inning against Golden Valley (15-13).—
Matt Wagner,
Daily News,
23 May 2026
Verb
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The O'Reilly Autoparts Series, which Busch raced in many times and won many times during his career, also took a moment to remember him before their race at Charlotte on Saturday.—
Matt Reigle,
FOXNews.com,
24 May 2026
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So no question in my mind about coming in and going to work and going to race.—
Steve Reed,
Chicago Tribune,
24 May 2026
Noun
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The Browns are expected to hold a quarterback competition in training camp among Deshaun Watson, Shedeur Sanders, and Dillon Gabriel, with rookie Taylen Green selected in the 2026 NFL Draft.—
Antwan Staley,
New York Daily News,
15 May 2026
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Critics portray the movement as politically motivated, but many athletes and parents involved insist their concerns center on competition rather than ideology.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
15 May 2026
Noun
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The recent Mother’s Day confrontation at Arthur’s Prime Steakhouse in Little Rock arrived accompanied by cellphone footage, influencer commentary, competing eyewitness narratives, reaction videos and enough online forensic analysis to qualify as a minor branch of cable-news jurisprudence.—
Philip Martin,
Arkansas Online,
23 May 2026
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LaBeouf was first arrested after the alleged confrontation and was initially charged with two counts of simple battery.—
Charlotte Phillipp,
PEOPLE,
23 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Face-off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/face-off. Accessed 26 May. 2026.
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