as in head-to-head
in direct confrontation or competition
the two brothers decided to go mano a mano in one final match to determine who was the better tennis player
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Recent Examples of mano a mano
There was no mano a mano moment between James and Bryant.
—
Zach Harper, New York Times, 14 Jan. 2026
Zoë survived two blasts and one mano a mano confrontation with Beelzebub!
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 10 Dec. 2025
Though neither is exactly a revelation — in the sense that these talents were revealed long ago — each gets space for menacing monologues and mano a mano match-ups.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 4 Dec. 2025
Surreal and dreamlike vignettes, and some laugh out loud moments of levity, break up mano a mano scenes in that hut that test the intensity of Bean and Day-Lewis.
—Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mano a mano
Zach Harper, New York Times, 14 Jan. 2026
Zoë survived two blasts and one mano a mano confrontation with Beelzebub!
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 10 Dec. 2025
Though neither is exactly a revelation — in the sense that these talents were revealed long ago — each gets space for menacing monologues and mano a mano match-ups.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 4 Dec. 2025
Surreal and dreamlike vignettes, and some laugh out loud moments of levity, break up mano a mano scenes in that hut that test the intensity of Bean and Day-Lewis.
—Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 19 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mano a mano
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mano a mano
Adverb
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Tie breakers are decided by, in order, head-to-head results, goal difference and goals scored.—
Boston Herald,
Boston Herald,
12 June 2026
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The four Black candidates held a series of meetings in an attempt to coalesce around one challenger to go head-to-head with Wasserman Schultz.—
Anthony Man,
Sun Sentinel,
12 June 2026
Adverb
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Corrigan says the vulnerability is in data breaches, not face-to-face scams.—
Wes Kilgore,
Forbes.com,
11 June 2026
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Analysts say these three IPOs could reshape markets and inject new volatility into equities, as already sky-high expectations for AI companies come face-to-face with the reality of how these companies are run.—
John Ruwitch,
NPR,
11 June 2026
Adverb
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Perkins, who is CEO of Canva, addressed head-on the concerns among many who work in creative industries about the potential for AI to supplant human labor.—
Cynthia Littleton,
Variety,
16 Apr. 2026
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Figures of Crisis makes productive use of this commonplace idea by tackling it head-on and turning it inside out.—
Ara H. Merjian,
ARTnews.com,
16 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mano a mano.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mano%20a%20mano. Accessed 15 Jun. 2026.
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