as in dynamic
having or marked by a strong desire to win or be better than others
The two siblings shared a rivalrous but ultimately loving relationship.
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Recent Examples of rivalrous
This Trump Doctrine emphasizes using American power aggressively — more aggressively than Trump’s immediate predecessors — to reshape key relationships and accrue U.S. advantage in a rivalrous world.
—
Hal Brands, Twin Cities, 13 July 2025
The sisters were long involved in a rivalrous feud.
—Lydia Price, People.com, 2 Mar. 2025
In Trump’s first term, that insight helped the United States begin a messy adjustment to the realities of a rivalrous age.
—Hal Brands, Foreign Affairs, 25 Feb. 2025
Ricardo divided society into three rivalrous classes—landlords, capitalists, and workers—and showed how the landlords were able to take the lion’s share of the economic surplus by virtue of owning, and charging rent on, a scarce and valuable resource: land.
—John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for rivalrous
Hal Brands, Twin Cities, 13 July 2025
The sisters were long involved in a rivalrous feud.
—Lydia Price, People.com, 2 Mar. 2025
In Trump’s first term, that insight helped the United States begin a messy adjustment to the realities of a rivalrous age.
—Hal Brands, Foreign Affairs, 25 Feb. 2025
Ricardo divided society into three rivalrous classes—landlords, capitalists, and workers—and showed how the landlords were able to take the lion’s share of the economic surplus by virtue of owning, and charging rent on, a scarce and valuable resource: land.
—John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for rivalrous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rivalrous
Adjective
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The team aimed to recreate this kind of dynamic control in a soft, synthetic material using digital design rather than complex biological systems.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
6 Feb. 2026
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The dynamic looks slightly different for photographer Swapnil Junjare.—
Nikita Khanna,
Vogue,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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If guys aren’t going to hold themselves to certain competitive standards, Gobert suggested, Wolves coach Chris Finch should start benching the culprits.—
Jace Frederick,
Twin Cities,
7 Feb. 2026
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The Celtics then took that momentum into a competitive fourth quarter that included four lead changes and four ties, completing the comeback win.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
7 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The mountainous region is one of various points in the state where a turf war has played out for more than a year between two rival factions of the Sinaloa cartel.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
8 Feb. 2026
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Both victims in that case are uncharged suspects in the 2021 killing of Bert Brigham III, a fatal shooting that Oakland police attributed to a feud between two rival gangs in East Oakland, court records show.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
8 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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But smart casting, witty writing, lively directing, and artful character development have also yielded the rare superhero riff that, as Kovak puts it, finds the human underneath.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
26 Jan. 2026
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For 30 minutes, the producers mostly paint with a warm, lively palette, whisking fragments of IDM, ghettotech, and house into a hypnotic swirl.—
Rae-Aila Crumble,
Pitchfork,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Meanwhile, Venus Williams, the 45-year-old, seven-time Grand Slam singles champion, appears determined to keep trying to win tennis matches at an age when most players have long retired.—
James Hansen,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
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According to the release, 15 participating dogs have special needs, including Wynonna, a determined pup with only three legs; and Eleanor, who is both deaf and vision-impaired.—
Chris Sims,
IndyStar,
8 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rivalrous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rivalrous. Accessed 9 Feb. 2026.
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