as in aggression
an inclination to fight or quarrel
a panel of political pundits with a well-earned reputation for unfettered feistiness
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Recent Examples of feistiness
Thanks to the care from the hospital staff at Carne Foundation and her own feistiness, Sienna Bobbie Crocker now weighs seven pounds, 12 ½ ounces and last Monday, 43 days after her birthday, the family brought her home.
—
Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 3 Apr. 2026
His feistiness didn’t require any time to reach its customary levels.
—Josh Yohe, New York Times, 19 Mar. 2026
Mangiapane’s feistiness is something the group can learn from, now that the 29-year-old is suddenly a veteran in the locker room.
—Kalen Lumpkins, Chicago Tribune, 14 Mar. 2026
Drescher brought greater visibility and idiosyncratic feistiness to SAG-AFTRA, but can that momentum be sustained?
—Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 20 Aug. 2025
Simeone will have to find ways to replace De Paul’s feistiness in midfield, Lino’s strong wing play, and Correa’s tenacity off the bench.
—Vitas Carosella, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 3 Apr. 2026
His feistiness didn’t require any time to reach its customary levels.
—Josh Yohe, New York Times, 19 Mar. 2026
Mangiapane’s feistiness is something the group can learn from, now that the 29-year-old is suddenly a veteran in the locker room.
—Kalen Lumpkins, Chicago Tribune, 14 Mar. 2026
Drescher brought greater visibility and idiosyncratic feistiness to SAG-AFTRA, but can that momentum be sustained?
—Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 20 Aug. 2025
Simeone will have to find ways to replace De Paul’s feistiness in midfield, Lino’s strong wing play, and Correa’s tenacity off the bench.
—Vitas Carosella, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for feistiness
Noun
-
Following his Game 1 sluggishness, Wembanyama played with more aggression and decisiveness.—
Mark Medina,
Forbes.com,
6 June 2026
-
The teen witness said Hunter Metcalf, the victim’s twin brother, told Anthony to leave in an escalating tone of aggression.—
Matt Lavietes,
NBC news,
6 June 2026
Noun
-
Lurie partly values Roseman because of his strategic aggressiveness to make sure great players are locked down long term.—
Brooks Kubena,
New York Times,
1 June 2026
-
Some more aggressiveness on the bases as well.—
LaMond Pope,
Chicago Tribune,
28 May 2026
Noun
-
From Stonewall’s 1969 uprising to today’s golf tournaments, human rights summits and bar crawls, Pride events in Los Angeles, New York and global cities mix festival energy with defiance.—
Geoff Mulvihill,
Los Angeles Times,
2 June 2026
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Tensions escalated when Tigray held regional elections in defiance of thata federal delay, leading to a political standoff that erupted into a civil war in November 2020.—
Nimi Princewill,
CNN Money,
31 May 2026
Noun
-
The apparent loss of the aircraft came after hostilities in the region escalated over the weekend, with Iran and Israel exchanging their first direct strikes in months late Sunday.—
Todd Symons,
CNN Money,
9 June 2026
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Pashinyan has implemented the complete transformation of Armenia’s position in the region and the world, going from a de facto protectorate of Russia to one bordering on hostility.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
8 June 2026
Noun
-
But all of that is in addition to his defense, his rebounding, his slashing, his voice, his pugnacity.—
Marcus Thompson II,
New York Times,
22 May 2026
-
Trump had won by fifty-three points there in 2016, and Greene’s paranoid pugnacity seemed like a good fit, if voters could stomach an outsider.—
Charles Bethea,
New Yorker,
5 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Feistiness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/feistiness. Accessed 9 Jun. 2026.
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