variants
or knock-down-and-drag-out
as in violent
marked by bursts of destructive force or intense activity
the football game was a knock-down, drag-out battle between bitter rivals
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of knock-down, drag-out
The meeting of a pair of programs on the rise was a knock-down, drag-out affair that appeared to have no end in sight.
—
Evan Webeck, Mercury News, 20 Sep. 2025
What follows is a knock-down, drag-out brawl reminiscent of Tommy Hearns and Marvin Hagler.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 15 Dec. 2024
This was a knock-down, drag-out fight — the kind of match that would make for excellent watching when Marvel Snap tournaments are up and running.
—Ash Parrish, The Verge, 31 Jan. 2023
Last week’s knock-down, drag-out fight could just be the first of many this session as GOP lawmakers grapple with government spending, the debt ceiling and the situation at the border.
—Dallas News, 10 Jan. 2023
But both performers rode their SNL success to Hollywood superstardom, in turn validating the audience's appetite for inspired silliness and knock-down, drag-out belly-laughs.
—Dennis Perkins, EW.com, 13 Dec. 2022
As much as the streaming wars can feel like a knock-down, drag-out fight, Amazon can spend time on the ropes because streaming isn’t its core business.
—Angela Watercutter, Wired, 18 Mar. 2022
But rather than a knock-down, drag-out fight to the finish, this series is all about empowerment.
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 17 Feb. 2022
However, leaping in expecting an argument to become a knock-down, drag-out fight isn't the best way to go about your life.
—Tarot Astrologers, chicagotribune.com, 9 Feb. 2022
Evan Webeck, Mercury News, 20 Sep. 2025
What follows is a knock-down, drag-out brawl reminiscent of Tommy Hearns and Marvin Hagler.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 15 Dec. 2024
This was a knock-down, drag-out fight — the kind of match that would make for excellent watching when Marvel Snap tournaments are up and running.
—Ash Parrish, The Verge, 31 Jan. 2023
Last week’s knock-down, drag-out fight could just be the first of many this session as GOP lawmakers grapple with government spending, the debt ceiling and the situation at the border.
—Dallas News, 10 Jan. 2023
But both performers rode their SNL success to Hollywood superstardom, in turn validating the audience's appetite for inspired silliness and knock-down, drag-out belly-laughs.
—Dennis Perkins, EW.com, 13 Dec. 2022
As much as the streaming wars can feel like a knock-down, drag-out fight, Amazon can spend time on the ropes because streaming isn’t its core business.
—Angela Watercutter, Wired, 18 Mar. 2022
But rather than a knock-down, drag-out fight to the finish, this series is all about empowerment.
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 17 Feb. 2022
However, leaping in expecting an argument to become a knock-down, drag-out fight isn't the best way to go about your life.
—Tarot Astrologers, chicagotribune.com, 9 Feb. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for knock-down, drag-out
Adjective
-
In its early days, the UFC was so violent, with almost no rules, that it was effectively exiled to pay-per-view.—
Luke Burbank,
CBS News,
1 Mar. 2026
-
As the material appears to shift from soft to hard, the outward and downward movements of the tubes no longer suggest the gentle pressure of filling and escaping air, but imply a decidedly more violent bending and crushing of metal, as if the tubes had been pushed out of shape against their will.—
Gordon Hughes,
Artforum,
1 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Yet within these modest walls burns a fierce desire to learn.—
Joyeeta Banerjee,
NPR,
1 Mar. 2026
-
Trump’s statement listed grievances beyond the nuclear program, stretching back to the beginning of the Islamic Republic following a revolution in 1979 that turned Iran from an American ally in the Middle East into a fierce foe.—
Jon Gambrell,
Fortune,
28 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
It has been loved onto the screen by the ferocious talent of MK, the exceptional executives at HBO and the world-class production team in Wolf Studios Wales, where Bad Wolf has filmed every season.—
Joe Otterson,
Variety,
25 Feb. 2026
-
Luna is in your strict 10th house, motivating ferocious Mars in your committed 6th house.—
Tarot.com,
Baltimore Sun,
25 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Ricki Nash was so furious that Loone took out a restraining order on behalf of Mercury to keep him safe.—
Hilary Whiteman,
CNN Money,
28 Feb. 2026
-
A whole lot of people in Hollywood are furious with the city’s Historic Preservation Board, which voted three weeks ago to grant a special zoning exception for a mikvah, a religious bathhouse for Jewish women, in a historic single-family residential neighborhood.—
Steve Bousquet,
Sun Sentinel,
28 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
In the waters off Singapore, a recently uncovered a shipwreck with a huge cargo of blue-and-white porcelain is shedding light on the storied Chinese craft produced during the turbulent era of the Mongol Empire.—
Issy Ronald,
CNN Money,
28 Feb. 2026
-
Now 85 years old, Dupart came of age in the turbulent 1960s, when racial tensions exploded and voices cried to be heard.—
Edie Kasten,
CBS News,
28 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Apply it wherever skin looks rough or lackluster, and relish in the relief.—
Sarah Felbin,
Allure,
25 Feb. 2026
-
But the simple sight of Barkov on the ice is one that provides optimism for a Panthers fan base yearning for any sort of optimism during a rough season.—
Jordan McPherson,
Miami Herald,
25 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The volcanic rock near several beaches will shred bare feet without apology.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
25 Feb. 2026
-
Paired with its varied landscapes—beaches, rice paddies, jungle interiors, and volcanic terrain—Bali offers a wide range of experiences in a single trip, without requiring long-distance travel.—
Lauren Dana Ellman,
Travel + Leisure,
25 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Klæbo’s rabid climb was almost sinister, a Newtonian affront against gravity and the native difficulty of hills.—
Vinson Cunningham,
New Yorker,
21 Feb. 2026
-
The news broke the hearts of the rabid fans eager to see a more brutalist Michelangelo on a vengeance mission on the big screen.—
Nick Romano,
Entertainment Weekly,
17 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Knock-down, drag-out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/knock-down%2C%20drag-out. Accessed 3 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
