Synonyms of fighting

fighting 1 of 3

adjective

as in battling

Related Words

• battling
• warring
• savage
• cross
• vicious
• testy
• ugly
• hostile
• irritable
• disagreeable
• ornery
• peevish
• fretful
• petulant
• dyspeptic
• bilious
• fractious
• acidic
• antagonistic
• irascible
• grumpy
• surly
• bristly
• touchy
• querulous
• waspish
• choleric
• snappish
• grouchy
• pettish
• combative
• bearish
• crabby
• huffy
• cranky
• belligerent
• stroppy
• warlike
• confrontational
• aggressive
• ill-tempered
• militant
• prickly
• fierce
• gladiatorial
• assaultive
• feisty
• pugnacious
• bellicose
• quarrelsome
• ill-natured
• ill-humored
• agonistic
• snappy
• contentious
• argumentative
• hot-tempered
• scrappy
• rude
• chippy
• discordant
• brawly
• disputatious
• truculent

Dissimilar Words

• peaceful
• peaceable
• pacific
• nonaggressive
• uncombative
• friendly
• pleasant
• benevolent
• conciliatory
• nonbelligerent
• unwarlike
• quiet
• calm
• cordial
• gracious
• good-natured
• amiable
• unbelligerent
• ingratiating
• amicable
• sociable
• genial
• complaisant
• obliging
• easygoing
• uncontentious
• antimilitarist
• affable
• mild
• kindhearted
• relaxed
• tranquil
• serene
• gentle
• anti-imperialist
• benign
• kindly
• good-tempered

fighting

2 of 3

noun

as in combat

Related Words

• combat
• warfare
• battle
• skirmish
• engagement
• action
• civil war
• war
• world war
• cold war
• police action
• hostilities
• conflict
• holy war
• limited war
• conflagration
• hot war

Dissimilar Words

• peace
• disarmament
• demobilization
• demilitarization
• pacification
• truce
• calm
• tranquility
• peacefulness
• ceasefire

fighting

3 of 3

verb

present participle of fight

1

as in combating

to oppose (someone) in physical conflict

a proud people who have fiercely fought all invaders of their homeland

Synonyms & Similar Words

• battling
• combating
• beating
• dueling
• clashing (with)
• skirmishing (with)
• wrestling
• warring (against)
• hitting
• punching
• knocking
• slapping
• boxing
• jousting
• scrimmaging (with)
• striking
• pounding
• battering
• sparring
• slugging
• smacking
• banging
• hammering
• slamming
• brawling
• whacking
• thumping
• bashing
• smiting
• swatting
• buffeting
• grappling
• slogging
• swiping
• batting
• pasting
• bumping
• whaling
• belting
• scuffling
• clobbering
• bopping
• socking
• colliding
• tussling
• thwacking
• bludgeoning
• walloping

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• submitting
• giving up
• surrendering

2

as in opposing

to strive to reduce or eliminate

a civil rights leader who dedicated his life to fighting prejudice

Synonyms & Similar Words

• opposing
• combating
• battling
• countering
• resisting
• confronting
• contending (with)
• withstanding
• oppugning
• thwarting
• facing
• frustrating
• foiling
• checkmating
• baffling
• defying
• meeting

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• promoting
• advancing
• encouraging
• fostering
• cultivating
• suffering
• furthering
• forwarding
• supporting
• bearing
• enduring
• nurturing
• advocating
• abiding
• nourishing
• upholding
• backing
• endorsing
• championing

3

as in competing

to engage in a contest

everyone on that street seems to be fighting to see who can create the gaudiest holiday lighting display

Synonyms & Similar Words

• competing
• contending
• battling
• racing
• vying
• rivaling
• playing
• facing off
• challenging
• maneuvering
• engaging
• jostling
• jockeying
• working
• trying out
• going out
• training

4

as in bickering

to express different opinions about something often angrily

if you kids continue to fight, I'm turning this car around and we're heading back home!

Synonyms & Similar Words

• bickering
• arguing
• quarreling
• clashing
• brawling
• wrangling
• squabbling
• disputing
• debating
• scrapping
• discussing
• rowing
• controverting
• hassling
• quibbling
• spatting
• falling out
• altercating
• jarring
• tiffing
• argufying
• brabbling
• contesting
• mixing it up
• locking horns
• contending
• butting heads
• bandying words
• protesting
• tangling
• challenging
• daring
• kicking
• defying
• objecting
• fussing
• nitpicking
• considering
• caviling

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• coexisting
• getting along
• accepting
• agreeing
• consenting
• concurring
• assenting

5

as in resisting

to refuse to give in to

I tried to fight the temptation to eat another cookie—and lost

Synonyms & Similar Words

• resisting
• opposing
• withstanding
• repelling
• combating
• bucking
• defying
• battling
• contesting
• thwarting
• countering
• contending (with)
• stemming
• contradicting
• challenging
• hindering
• disputing
• obstructing
• checking
• frustrating
• balking
• foiling
• baffling

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• submitting (to)
• yielding (to)
• bowing (to)
• surrendering (to)
• succumbing (to)
• stooping (to)
• giving in (to)
• capitulating (to)
• knuckling under (to)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of fighting

Adjective

After having two children and settling into post-fighting life on her farm in Riverside, Rousey seriously began to consider an MMA return last year. — CBS News, 17 May 2026

Speaking ahead of the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Johnson told the BBC that the troops should be sent to peaceful regions in non-fighting roles. — ABC News, 21 Feb. 2026

But this story isn’t just for pro-fighting fans. — Victoria Moorwood, Cincinnati Enquirer, 26 Oct. 2025

Some had joined Ukrainian combat units as volunteers, while others have sought to assist the Ukrainian people in non-fighting capacities. — Dan Lamothe, Washington Post, 4 Feb. 2023

But the computer model couldn’t distinguish fighting roosters from non-fighting roosters. — Jeff Horwitz, WSJ, 17 Oct. 2021

Noun

The report said thousands more people are waiting to cross the narrow waterway that has become the center of fighting. — September 18, CBS News, 18 Sep. 2026

Hernandez entered the ring at Tuesday night’s Ultimate Fighting Championship Dana White Contender Series in Las Vegas’ Meta APEX with a 7-0 fighting record since 2021 — all wins by submission or knockout. — Devoun Cetoute, Miami Herald, 17 Sep. 2026

What the Strait operation cannot buy The seizure of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the ongoing fighting in the country come with serious risks for the Houthis, however. — Mahad D. Darar, The Conversation, 17 Sep. 2026

Oil prices climbed back above $100 per barrel last week following further US strikes on Iranian oil tankers in the Persian Gulf and the fighting in Yemen, sparking protests around the world as people demand government action and economic relief. — Eyad Kourdi, CNN Money, 16 Sep. 2026

Despite an October ceasefire that has reduced fighting in Gaza, Israel has continued to carry out strikes, killing at least 1,375 people since the agreement took effect, according to local health officials. — Jehad Alshrafi, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026

The nonpartisan agency estimated each additional month of fighting could cost an additional $2 billion to $3 billion. — Alex Harring, CNBC, 16 Sep. 2026

United Nations officials and NGOs have warned that the resurgence of fighting threatens to deepen a long-running humanitarian crisis. — David Brennan, ABC News, 16 Sep. 2026

Photographed by Mario Sorrenti, Cruise shows off his physique in the accompanying fashion spread, including a nearly shirtless look that proves the action star remains in fighting form. — Sameen Chaudhry, USA Today, 15 Sep. 2026

Verb

Muslim leaders and community members, in turn, told the USA TODAY Network they’re left fighting to defend their faith and warning the nation that its founding principles are at stake. — Brieanna J. Frank, USA Today, 6 Sep. 2026

But Verstappen had enough to pull clear in the last few laps and grab third, with the McLaren drivers slowed fighting amongst themselves. — Madeline Coleman, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026

Activists fused mourning and militance, fighting against indifference to the lives of gay men and, later, people of color and intravenous drug users. — Robert W. Snyder, New York Daily News, 6 Sep. 2026

Most crimes across Mexico went unsolved, and authorities sometimes appeared to be colluding with criminals instead of fighting them. — Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 6 Sep. 2026

Nunn and Miller-Meeks are fighting to keep their House seats, while Hinson is running in a competitive race for an open Senate seat. — James A. Downs, The Washington Examiner, 6 Sep. 2026

Police departments have lauded Flock’s and other companies’ license plate readers as a key crime-fighting tool. — Devoun Cetoute, Miami Herald, 5 Sep. 2026

As a result, the Fed’s attention is now fixed on fighting inflation, instead of the other part of its dual mandate, namely supporting the labor market. — Jason Ma, Fortune, 30 Aug. 2026

Thousands of Amazon shoppers rave about the Activscience Neck-Firming Cream for its skin-tightening, wrinkle-fighting powers, and now it’s marked down to just $25. — Clara McMahon, PEOPLE, 30 Aug. 2026