as in discord
a lack of agreement or harmony
there was friction between the two sides of the family
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Recent Examples of friction
Not because of ratings or replay value, but because of the relationships forged in the friction.
—
Tobias Bass, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2026
Also, many officials expressed broad concern about the Kurdish fighters expected to enter Iran, saying that injecting sectarian conflict into the already combustible situation will be detrimental and also cause friction with Turkey, which fears Kurdish separatists.
—Margaret Brennan, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2026
The pressure is to do more with less, optimize everything, strip out the friction.
—Chris Schembra, Rolling Stone, 5 Mar. 2026
Protest has defined academia for generations, from civil rights and the Vietnam War in the 1960s to the ongoing friction between supporters of Israel and Palestine.
—Judy Berman, Time, 5 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for friction
Tobias Bass, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2026
Also, many officials expressed broad concern about the Kurdish fighters expected to enter Iran, saying that injecting sectarian conflict into the already combustible situation will be detrimental and also cause friction with Turkey, which fears Kurdish separatists.
—Margaret Brennan, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2026
The pressure is to do more with less, optimize everything, strip out the friction.
—Chris Schembra, Rolling Stone, 5 Mar. 2026
Protest has defined academia for generations, from civil rights and the Vietnam War in the 1960s to the ongoing friction between supporters of Israel and Palestine.
—Judy Berman, Time, 5 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for friction
Recent Examples of Synonyms for friction
Noun
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The calls also revealed some staff discord.—
Morgan Lee,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Mar. 2026
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There hasn’t been any significant drama or discord like last year with Rafael Devers, and outside of a handful of non-roster invitees, there haven’t been any major injuries suffered during camp, either.—
Mac Cerullo,
Boston Herald,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Gender care strife notwithstanding, Frias’ tenure at Rady has been positive.—
Paul Sisson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 Mar. 2026
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Challenging life circumstances—think divorce, job loss, or financial strife—can take a drastic toll on their mental health.—
Sam Manzella,
Flow Space,
5 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The North Atlantic Treaty Organization intercepted a ballistic missile fired from Iran toward Turkey on Monday, the second such incident, raising the risk the military alliance could be drawn more directly into the conflict.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
10 Mar. 2026
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As conflict destabilizes parts of the Middle East, the ripple effects are already reaching the region’s luxury economy, which has become a promising growth engine for a struggling global sector.—
Tara Donaldson,
Vogue,
10 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Part of that discordance might be the fact that as a genre, rock has historically been difficult to define.—
Hannah Dailey,
Billboard,
19 Nov. 2025
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The sport of off-roading suffers from a fundamental discordance: The desire to get out into nature and the irreparable harm inherent in the process of off-roading.—
Tim Stevens,
ArsTechnica,
25 July 2025
Noun
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Bart Jansen White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump thinks the American public the supports the war against Iran.—
Jeanine Santucci,
USA Today,
5 Mar. 2026
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More than 17,500 American citizens have returned to the US from the Middle East since the war with Iran began six days ago, according to the State Department.—
Alexandra Banner,
CNN Money,
5 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The Defense Department’s reliance on Anthropic’s AI came as a shocking realization that ultimately led to their dramatic schism, according to a top Pentagon official.—
Jason Ma,
Fortune,
7 Mar. 2026
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Harper’s disgust marks a major schism between the former besties.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The discordancy is so intriguing — like learning that Katharine Graham went to nude encounter sessions at Esalen, or Alan Greenspan was once in a Lynyrd Skynyrd cover band.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
17 Nov. 2021
Noun
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In the cat-and-mouse game of drone warfare, the Ukrainians have also built up a layered defense against the Shahed and its variants – and claim to have seen significant success in countering Russian drone swarms.—
Nathan Hodge,
CNN Money,
7 Mar. 2026
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Iraqis breathed a few gulps of freedom before secular warfare between Sunni and Shia militias began tearing the country apart.—
Nolan Finley,
Twin Cities,
6 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Friction.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/friction. Accessed 11 Mar. 2026.
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