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

Six fighting bulls and their steers repeatedly knocked runners to the cobblestones, with one bull breaking from the herd and slamming into a cluster of unsuspecting participants. — Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2026

Finally, some claim that restrictions on Russian and Belarusian athletes have not swayed the Russian government’s decision to end the fighting in Ukraine. — Mark Temnycky, Forbes.com, 11 July 2026

Both sides had an interest in halting the fighting and broadly agreed on the principles that eventually led to disengagement and, ultimately, the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty of 1979. — Anthony Wanis-St John, The Conversation, 10 July 2026

The fighting coincided with a weeklong funeral for former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and four of his family members killed on the first day of the conflict. — Brittney Melton, NPR, 10 July 2026

Global oil and fuel markets are ill prepared for a resumption of fighting between the US and Iran, analysts warned. — Prashant Rao, semafor.com, 10 July 2026

The fighting is what has made teen takeovers so polarizing in recent months. — Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 10 July 2026

With no end in sight to the fighting after one year of bloodshed, the IOC reiterates its condemnation of the war in Ukraine, which is a blatant violation of the Olympic Truce that was in effect at the time, and the Olympic Charter. — Tracy Grant, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 July 2026

Ukraine, though harboring no illusions about matching Russia’s long-range weaponry or the size of its fighting forces, has been ramping up domestic production of more advanced, longer-range drones and missiles. — Ned Temko, Christian Science Monitor, 9 July 2026

Verb

Police encountered teens fighting, launching fireworks at other people and carrying handguns. — Lauren Mascarenhas, CNN Money, 5 July 2026

This serum is great for fading dark spots, boosting collagen production, and fighting visible signs of aging like fine lines and dullness. — Reece Andavolgyi, InStyle, 4 July 2026

Recently, courageous athletes like Riley Gaines have showcased the power of the American spirit by relentlessly fighting to keep women sports female. — Jon Root Outkick, FOXNews.com, 4 July 2026

Conventional wisdom suggested this would be a high-tire-wear race with drivers continuously fighting the handling of their cars. — Jess Bryant, New York Times, 4 July 2026

After Bunker Hill, Salem went on to serve in the Sixth Massachusetts Regiment and Fourth Continental Regiment, fighting in the Battles of Saratoga, Monmouth and Stony Point. — Catherine Messier, The Providence Journal, 4 July 2026

Hezbollah and Israel have been fighting since the beginning of the war. — Hadeel Al-Shalchi, NPR, 4 July 2026

Two firefighters died from injures sustained while fighting the blaze. — ABC News, 3 July 2026

The poem tells the story of Odysseus, king of Ithaca, and his fraught journey home following 10 years fighting in the Trojan War. — Brianna Zigler, Entertainment Weekly, 3 July 2026