FACE-OFFS Synonyms: 41 Similar and Opposite Words

face-offs

noun

plural of face-off

as in rivalries

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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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 face-offs For national tournaments, the corollary is how poorer countries always have to match up against richer ones for regional face-offs and qualifiers that culminate in the quadrennial dream that is the World Cup. — Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 20 July 2026 The game followed a championship series filled with down-to-the-wire face-offs won by edge-of-your-seat buzzer beaters. — Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 15 June 2026 The plan is for the star forward to take face-offs again. — Kalen Lumpkins, Chicago Tribune, 18 Feb. 2026 The film’s centerpieces are the face-offs between Plemons’ Teddy and Stone’s CEO. — Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 11 Feb. 2026 Turcotte has been an efficient point producer relative to his ice time, boasts strong two-way metrics, and has won nearly 56 percent of his face-offs this year. — Harman Dayal, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2026 The film keeps pace through toe-curlingly tense table tennis face-offs, high-stakes hustles, and a jaw-dropping scene involving a bathtub that honestly puts Saltburn to shame. — Anastasia Sanger, Glamour, 22 Dec. 2025 Several of these races have attracted attention beyond their city limits, for interesting face-offs or for their potential to signal where some states and districts could be leaning as next year's midterm elections draw closer. — Kathryn Palmer, USA Today, 29 Oct. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for face-offs

Noun

North Dakota State’s move to the FBS has created excitement about new opponents, rivalries and possibilities.

— Manny Navarro, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026
Just as their own fictions bend and weave tales, so too do their own lives and rivalries.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of rivalries

Noun

Littrell's beachfront property has become a flash point in the beach battles.

— Debbie Elliott, NPR, 4 Sep. 2026
California beat several bluebloods in the transfer portal and continues to win high school recruiting battles, with an elite 2027 class on the horizon led by Westlake wideout Charles Davis and Chaparral quarterback Dane Weber.

— Joaquin Ruiz, Los Angeles Times, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of battles

Noun

Forest have generally been solid, with only Manchester City (61 per cent) and Sunderland (57 per cent) winning a higher share of aerial duels than their 56 per cent.

— Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
Cherry went 74 minutes in Sunday’s loss to Racing Louisville, recording four defensive clearances and winning three of her four aerial duels as Angel City lost for the first time in four games.

— Damian Calhoun, Daily News, 31 July 2026

Definition of duels

Noun

Videos of the confrontations got hundreds of thousands of views on social media, a burst of attention for a conservative youth organization that is charting its next chapter after last year’s fatal shooting of its leader Charlie Kirk.

— Hannah Fingerhut, Los Angeles Times, 6 Sep. 2026
The latest deployment of the jets highlights China’s potentially cheaper approach to the increasingly frequent air confrontations in the contested region.

— Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 6 Sep. 2026

Definition of confrontations

Noun

The Wales international made 53 appearances in all competitions last season and has started both of Forest’s opening two Premier League games this term.

— Paul Taylor, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
Su, remarkably skilled at intensifying the flavors of a single fruit or vegetable in a drink of many elements, had a knack for winning national cocktail competitions.

— Bill Addison, Los Angeles Times, 3 Sep. 2026

Definition of competitions

Noun

New quarterback Rocco Becht threw for 271 yards and four touchdowns in his debut as Penn State had two passes over 40 yards and 14 over 10 yards, a massive improvement from the struggles in previous years.

— The Athletic College Football Staff, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026
But Mora emphasizes that the largest number of drone reports come from within Mexico, particularly in the state of Sinaloa, amid the internal struggles of the powerful cartel that operates there.

— Sol Amaya, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of struggles

Noun

As America nears the 250th anniversary of its founding, Congress emerges as a messy but essential stage where the nation’s biggest conflicts, compromises and experiments play out.

— Lisa Mascaro, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2026
Experts like Ginn note that the spread of drone use across the region is a real threat for the region as criminal groups draw inspiration from foreign conflicts.

— Sol Amaya, CNN Money, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of conflicts

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face off

face-offs

faces

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“Face-offs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/face-offs. Accessed 11 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of face-offs

noun

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