rivals 1 of 2

plural of rival
1
as in counterparts
one that is equal to another in status, achievement, or value a design that is a rival to any produced by a professional graphic artist

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
3
as in competitors
one who strives for the same thing as another the four cities that are the top rivals for the site of the next Olympic Games

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

rivals

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of rival
as in competes
to engage in a contest two longtime friends who have rivaled for the same things at every stage of their lives

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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 rivals
Noun
What are my rivals doing with gen AI? Harvard Business Review, 5 Nov. 2025 His legitimacy, lineage, gender and Protestant religion gave him the edge over his rivals, even if there were still doubts over the legality of his claim. Literary Hub, 4 Nov. 2025 However, Starbucks has struggled in recent years, along with other Western companies that have lost ground to local rivals amid rising nationalism and reluctance to pay premiums for foreign brands. Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 4 Nov. 2025 Competition from Chinese rivals, Tesla’s aging lineup, and a backlash against CEO Elon Musk’s political activism, are behind the decline, Reuters reported. Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 4 Nov. 2025 In its home market, pizza fatigue after pandemic lockdowns have led to slumping sales, and rivals like Domino’s Pizza have taken share from Pizza Hut. Amelia Lucas, CNBC, 4 Nov. 2025 According to online gambling website Polymarket, a platform where users can place bets on the likelihood of world events, the New York assemblymember, a democratic socialist, has a large lead over his rivals, independent Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa. Kate Plummer, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025 Novo Nordisk is developing a new obesity drug that clinical trials suggest rivals Zepbound in effectiveness, and Eli Lilly is testing a drug that could end up being even more effective than the current products on the market. Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 28 Oct. 2025 These involve raiding the lairs of hoodlum rivals, then singlehandedly dissuading them from competition. Dennis Harvey, Variety, 28 Oct. 2025
Verb
According to recent data, Waymo’s market share now rivals that of Lyft. Elisabeth Garber-Paul, Rolling Stone, 5 Nov. 2025 Chief rivals McDonald’s and Burger King also reported sluggish sales earlier this year as consumers cut back spending. Jordan Valinsky, CNN Money, 31 Oct. 2025 The Rams get three straight weeks against contenders in NFC West rivals San Francisco and Seattle before hosting Tampa Bay. Scott Phillips, New York Times, 28 Oct. 2025 Elsewhere, the graceful lines and vivid colors with which the macroscope Earth, by Cameron Beccario, visualizes global weather patterns give it a beauty that rivals your favorite Impressionist painting. Big Think, 27 Oct. 2025 According to the institute, this performance rivals traditional computing clusters powered by multiple high-end GPUs. Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 27 Oct. 2025 The film's twist is one of those watercooler moments that rivals any horror movie ending. Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 25 Oct. 2025 This feature directly rivals technologies like Nvidia’s Deep Learning Supersampling (DLSS) and AMD’s FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR). PC Magazine, 21 Oct. 2025 Meanwhile, new energy shines through with international flavors at places such as Salt City Market, along with a buzzy bar culture that arguably rivals those of much larger cities. Lauren Dana Ellman, Travel + Leisure, 19 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rivals
Noun
  • Experts say many multinational firms are adopting dual leadership models, where global business unit heads in India co-own strategy and product outcomes with their counterparts at headquarters.
    Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 6 Nov. 2025
  • Specifically, supernovae derived from younger stellar populations appear fainter, while their older counterparts appear brighter.
    Ian Randall, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • In New York City, State Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani won the mayoral race against high-profile opponents.
    Deputy News Editor, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Nov. 2025
  • A number of billionaires collectively spent more than $22 million to back Mamdani’s opponents, according to Forbes.
    Nino Paoli, Fortune, 6 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • Axel Springer laid off 20% of its staff at Business Insider, and has instituted strict spending limits at Politico that have left employees grumbling about the outlet’s inability to match some of the salaries of its competitors.
    Max Tani, semafor.com, 10 Nov. 2025
  • There will be some minor differences between ProphetX and prediction market competitors.
    Dan Bernstein, Sportico.com, 10 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • Cherry’s older brother, Taeshon, played collegiately and competes professionally overseas.
    Joe Davidson, Sacbee.com, 8 Nov. 2025
  • Sook also argued broadcast stations will continue to dominate political advertising sales, but faces stepped up competition from streaming services, where Nexstar competes with its NewsNation live TV streamer.
    Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 6 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • By 1974, though, many women had already discarded those notions as instruments of domination, psychic equivalents of the whalebone corset.
    James Marcus, New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2025
  • Ancient book clasps — used to keep manuscript tomes shut — were uncovered at the site, along with styli, the medieval equivalents of pens and pencils.
    Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 30 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Some of them were former foes, while others are superstars he's never faced in the ring.
    Matthew Couden, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
  • Trump’s tariff strong-arming has rattled relationships with America’s friends and foes.
    Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 3 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • Instead, this team bullied one of the top NFC playoff contenders from start to finish.
    Tyler Everett, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Nov. 2025
  • Performers like Olivia Dean and PinkPantheress have pretty much provided the soundtrack for TikTok this past year, and are being viewed as strong contenders in that category, along with Ravyn Lenae and Megan Moroney.
    Lisa Respers France, CNN Money, 6 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • Youngkin’s comments come after Democrats swept last night’s statewide and House of Delegates races in Virginia.
    Julia Manchester, The Hill, 5 Nov. 2025
  • Detroit City Council races Along with a heated mayor's race, there are two open districts seats and two at-large seats up for grabs on the Detroit City Council.
    Detroit Free Press, Freep.com, 3 Nov. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Rivals.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rivals. Accessed 11 Nov. 2025.

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