KNOCK-DOWN, DRAG-OUT Synonyms: 55 Similar and Opposite Words

knock-down, drag-out

adjective

ˈnäk-ˌdauṅ-ˈdrag-ˌau̇t

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 game, whose knock-down, drag-out gunfights recall another first-person RPG, Call of Duty, drew a lot of initial buzz over the character Johnny Silverhand played by Reeves. — Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 8 Oct. 2026 But its industry titans are also locked in a knock-down, drag-out fight for market share, with brutal price wars and competition in a crowded home market deflating profits and stymieing growth. — Simone McCarthy, CNN Money, 2 May 2026 That means the knock-down, drag-out government shutdown battles that have become a Washington ritual are, in effect, a fight over a little more than a quarter of the federal ledger. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 28 Apr. 2026 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 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

Recent Examples of Synonyms for knock-down, drag-out

Adjective

That, in turn, reveals a family history of violent gravitational instability caused by events like giant collisions and planetary ejections.

— Robert Lea, Space.com, 14 Oct. 2026
The show, which can certainly be tense, spends more time on being funny than violent.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of violent

Adjective

His successor, Bennett, had been among its fiercest critics, raising the prospect that the arrangement might finally end.

— Eric Cortellessa, Time, 18 Oct. 2026
The deadly fire erupted Saturday at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright, where fierce winds fueled flames that spread beyond the installation and into surrounding rural areas.

— Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of fierce

Adjective

After the initial blast, which spews out gamma rays, a storm of radiation pours into the surrounding galaxy, creating a ferocious afterglow that burns in every part of the electromagnetic spectrum.

— Robin George Andrews, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
The characters thrust and parry with ferocious wit in an upscale California desert setting that scenic designer Scott Pask generically satirizes as a category of social living.

— Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026

Definition of ferocious

Adjective

Before long there were three squad cars with lights flashing parked in the drive, with a furious Grandpa Joe trying to sort out the trouble.

— Kerry Kennedy, Vanity Fair, 13 Oct. 2026
The conflicts are raw and unresolved, and Churchill forces theatergoers to make up their own minds about the characters’ furious dialect.

— Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of furious

Adjective

The Dallas Cowboys are bringing former NFL coach Mike Pettine out of retirement to serve as a senior assistant to defensive coordinator Christian Parker, whose debut in his new position is off to a rough start.

— CBS News, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026
The Tampa Bay Rays are staring down a rough start to the American League Championship Series.

— OutKick, FOXNews.com, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of rough

Adjective

Explore its waterfalls, glaciers and volcanic landscapes, and treat any aurora sightings as an extraordinary bonus.

— Daisy Dobrijevic, Space.com, 16 Oct. 2026
No, Rome was not built in a day, but it was built at breathtaking speed, its temples, amphitheaters, and aqueducts rising with the help of a magical blend of volcanic ash and lime.

— Sara Herschander, Vox, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of volcanic

Adjective

Small high school gymnasium, rabid fans watching the WNBA Finals.

— Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2026
The outsized performance of movies such as Obsession and Backrooms sparked a rabid interest from studios in a generation of filmmakers who did not come up the traditional latter, but instead rose up making short-form content on digital platforms.

— Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of rabid

Browse Nearby Words

knockdown

knock-down, drag-out

knockdowns

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Knock-down, drag-out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/knock-down%2C%20drag-out. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of knock-down, drag-out

adjective

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

compunction

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes