as in fisticuffs
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Recent Examples of fistfight
The pursuers yelled taunts, threw bottles, and expected the two women to settle their differences with a fistfight, according to court records.
—
Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 27 Jan. 2026
From a football perspective, this game would be a fistfight at the line of scrimmage.
—David Ubben, New York Times, 6 Jan. 2026
And the crowd lurches; the crowd flexes; the crowd feels its core, which is both a sucking emptiness and a site of repellent energy, like the space cleared by a fistfight.
—James Parker, The Atlantic, 16 Dec. 2025
Naturally, there's plenty of dysfunction as confessions are made, a turkey is flung across the table, a football game leads to a fistfight, and Claudia tries to maintain her sanity.
—Gwen Ihnat, Entertainment Weekly, 23 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fistfight
Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 27 Jan. 2026
From a football perspective, this game would be a fistfight at the line of scrimmage.
—David Ubben, New York Times, 6 Jan. 2026
And the crowd lurches; the crowd flexes; the crowd feels its core, which is both a sucking emptiness and a site of repellent energy, like the space cleared by a fistfight.
—James Parker, The Atlantic, 16 Dec. 2025
Naturally, there's plenty of dysfunction as confessions are made, a turkey is flung across the table, a football game leads to a fistfight, and Claudia tries to maintain her sanity.
—Gwen Ihnat, Entertainment Weekly, 23 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fistfight
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fistfight
Noun
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The Yankees started their slugfest in style against the Rays, as Judge’s big fly traveled 429 feet to the batter’s eye at Steinbrenner Field.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
20 Aug. 2025
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Hunter Henry, Austin Hooper, Jack Westover Notes: It’s been a slow, ugly slugfest among the backup tight ends to see who can win the No. 3 job.—
Andrew Callahan,
Boston Herald,
9 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Analysts say intelligence sharing would represent a low-risk way for Russia to support Iran while avoiding direct confrontation with the United States, even as Moscow balances in the region.—
Claire Carter,
The Washington Examiner,
8 Mar. 2026
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Ideological opposition turned to proxy confrontation through Iran's support for Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas, and for Hezbollah, which fought Israel during its long occupation of southern Lebanon.—
The Week UK,
TheWeek,
8 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Her tenure was marked by downward-trending stock prices and a series of blows to the company’s image.—
John Meyer,
Denver Post,
3 Mar. 2026
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Unfortunately, Starmer’s Labour government seems bent on inflicting even harsher blows very soon.—
David Frum,
The Atlantic,
2 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The vibe and verve are like Scott Pilgrim vs. the World meets Repo Man, but the material needed an extra punch-up at script stage.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
5 Feb. 2026
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But comics depend on feedback – punch-ups from fellow comedians and reactions from audiences – iterating jokes in the same way lean startups may innovate new products.—
Eva Roytburg,
Fortune,
25 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Chur was found at fault for the melee and was kicked out of the tournament.—
Kevin J. Farmer,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
1 Mar. 2026
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They have all been charged in connection to the melee, but remained at large as of Friday night.—
Brian Niemietz,
New York Daily News,
28 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Two top City Section baseball teams, El Camino Real and San Fernando, faced off Friday in a pitcher’s duel that went eight innings.—
Eric Sondheimer,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Mar. 2026
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Both teams seem to be settling into a duel between two aces.—
Thomas Jones,
Austin American Statesman,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Videos circulating on social media captured one protester rushing into the vigil and attempting to tear down a poster, resulting in a brawl between the two groups that prompted the New York City Police Department to intervene.—
Molly Parks,
The Washington Examiner,
7 Mar. 2026
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As the brawl unfolded, the crowd could be heard shouting profanity.—
Alexandra Koch,
FOXNews.com,
7 Mar. 2026
Noun
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During the portion of Thursday’s practice open to reporters, the Patriots practiced punch-out drills directly in front of reporters.—
Doug Kyed,
Boston Herald,
22 Dec. 2025
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For a lower-stakes, breezier project, try a camellias-lilacs-and-sunflower wooden bouquet ($40) or a faintly Lovecraftian punch-out assembly kit for a venomous blue-ringed octopus ($40).—
Jessica Winter,
New Yorker,
15 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fistfight.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fistfight. Accessed 11 Mar. 2026.
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