punch-ups

noun

plural of punch-up, chiefly British
as in fistfights

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for punch-ups
  1. blows
  2. confrontations
  3. melees
  4. brawls
  5. duels
  6. broils
Noun
  • Deaton was well-prepared, brought the fire, and landed a number of blows that at times appeared to make Markey wince.
    — Jon Keller, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The two countries have been trading blows on energy infrastructure.
    — Justina Lee, CNBC, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of blows
Noun
  • If last week’s Atlanta News First debate discouraged direct confrontations, Tuesday’s Atlanta Press Club showdown gave the two rivals room to unload on each other.
    — Adam Beam, AJC.com, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Climate activist Greta Thunberg joined student protesters in France on Tuesday after weeks of violent confrontations with police, thousands of arrests and widespread school closures over demands for education reform.
    — Brittany Miller, FOXNews.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of confrontations
Noun
  • Infantry has been around since officers figured out how to get soldiers organized instead of fighting in melees like football hooligans on a Saturday night after 12 pints of lager.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 13 Sep. 2026
  • There was a bunch of melees on the ice today.
    — Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 22 Apr. 2026
Definition of melees
Noun
  • The Rek Humanoid Robot Fighting League is a fighting organization that hosts humanoid robot versus robot brawls in an undersized MMA cage.
    — Jon Martindale, PC Magazine, 5 Oct. 2026
  • These days, oversight hearings have degenerated into partisan brawls.
    — David Wippman, Washington Post, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of brawls
Noun
  • In defence, his lack of physicality is becoming more glaring in a Premier League that is leaning more heavily than ever into duels, second balls and set pieces.
    — Liam Twomey, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026
  • The noodles, the cheese, the topping, the consistency—duels have been fought over less.
    — Josh Miller, Southern Living, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of duels
Noun
  • As Minnesota's Medicaid program broils in the hot seat over a recent round of federal fraud indictments, Indiana's Medicaid program is gaining national attention as a counter-example for its efforts to crack down on program eligibility and waste.
    — Kayla Dwyer, IndyStar, 29 Dec. 2025
  • This Ninja air-fries, roasts, broils, bakes, and dehydrates—all while using about 80 percent less energy than a regular oven.
    — Gabriela Izquierdo, Southern Living, 12 Nov. 2025
Definition of broils
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.

Browse Nearby Words

punch-up
punch-ups
punchy
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Punch-ups.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punch-ups. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of fervid

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

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

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

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

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

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

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All