as in toe-to-toe
in direct confrontation or competition
it's fitting that the two best teams during the regular season will go head-to-head for the championship
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Recent Examples of head-to-head
Camp time culminates in a team competition, where groups face off in a head-to-head series of tug-of-war battles, relays and other physical challenges — all in a quest for ultimate bragging rights.
—
Robin Roenker, USA Today, 2 Apr. 2026
Those aren’t direct comparisons because the drugs weren’t compared in a head-to-head clinical trial.
—Berkeley Lovelace Jr, NBC news, 1 Apr. 2026
Additionally, Lilly's pill bested oral Wegovy in a head-to-head study looking at their benefits to diabetes patients , including on weight loss.
—Jeff Marks, CNBC, 1 Apr. 2026
The combined practice has not been tested head-to-head.
—Allison Palmer, Sacbee.com, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for head-to-head
Robin Roenker, USA Today, 2 Apr. 2026
Those aren’t direct comparisons because the drugs weren’t compared in a head-to-head clinical trial.
—Berkeley Lovelace Jr, NBC news, 1 Apr. 2026
Additionally, Lilly's pill bested oral Wegovy in a head-to-head study looking at their benefits to diabetes patients , including on weight loss.
—Jeff Marks, CNBC, 1 Apr. 2026
The combined practice has not been tested head-to-head.
—Allison Palmer, Sacbee.com, 31 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for head-to-head
Recent Examples of Synonyms for head-to-head
Adverb
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There were a number of meetings, including Lively and Baldoni meeting face-to-face in a Manhattan courtroom a couple months ago.—
Dominic Patten,
Deadline,
6 Apr. 2026
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Many participants had spent months competing against one another online before meeting face-to-face for the first time.—
Tracy Yochum,
Miami Herald,
6 Apr. 2026
Adverb
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The fire officials, out conducting a missing persons search, were struck head-on.—
Joe Brandt,
CBS News,
7 Apr. 2026
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Kate Middleton decided to make a rare new purchase as a seasonal treat, meeting the occasion head-on.—
Anna Cafolla,
Vogue,
5 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Head-to-head.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/head-to-head. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
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