1
as in throng
a great number of persons or creatures massed together
I had to fight my way through the scrum of holiday shoppers at the mall
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in skirmish
a physical dispute between opposing individuals or groups
when the server spilled a drink on a customer, they got into a bit of a scrum before being separated
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in bedlam
British
a place of uproar or confusion
London's tube is quite a scrum during rush hour
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of scrum
Cunningham said Tuesday in a scrum with local reporters in Indianapolis.
—
Daniel Flick, AJC.com, 25 Feb. 2026
Paramedics were called after several players in the scrum were bloodied in the donnybrook.
—Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 23 Feb. 2026
Meafou and Thibaud Flament were recalled to the second row to give the scrum more ballast but Italy still won four scrum penalties from them.
—ABC News, 22 Feb. 2026
The technical was charged to the Wolfpack’s Darrion Williams for kicking Donaldson in a loose-ball scrum.
—Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 15 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for scrum
Daniel Flick, AJC.com, 25 Feb. 2026
Paramedics were called after several players in the scrum were bloodied in the donnybrook.
—Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 23 Feb. 2026
Meafou and Thibaud Flament were recalled to the second row to give the scrum more ballast but Italy still won four scrum penalties from them.
—ABC News, 22 Feb. 2026
The technical was charged to the Wolfpack’s Darrion Williams for kicking Donaldson in a loose-ball scrum.
—Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 15 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for scrum
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scrum
Noun
-
Prosecutors, police and FBI officials say Balat and Kayumi drove from Pennsylvania to New York City and joined a throng of counterprotesters at the rally, whose organizer, far-right activist Jake Lang, is a critic of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a Democrat and the first Muslim to hold the office.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
13 Mar. 2026
-
The wagon proceeded slowly down Mott Street as throngs of Chinese and white passersby stopped to watch.—
Charlotte Brooks,
Big Think,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The war began after several rounds of airstrikes and cross-border skirmishes, stemming from Pakistani claims that the Afghan government was harboring terrorists who used the country as a base to launch attacks against Pakistan.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
17 Mar. 2026
-
The curbs were initially enacted in 2020 after a border skirmish escalated tensions between the world’s two most populous nations.—
J.D. Capelouto,
semafor.com,
10 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Cue bedlam as the momentum swung decisively Wrexham’s way in a title race that had seen both teams already reach 100 points.—
Richard Sutcliffe,
New York Times,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Another centered on a teenage girl (Chloë Sevigny doppelgänger Emma Halleen), whose insecurities blind her to a life that is, on its surface, pretty good, finds a palpable sadness within the bedlam of the show.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Filled with Chesterfield sofas set on a leafy terrace, the more laid-back, brasserie-style Garden terrace is popular with a local Finnish crowd who prefer to dress down for dinner.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
17 Mar. 2026
-
Spring Break 2026 is in full swing as crowds of students and travelers flock to Fort Lauderdale beach.—
Michele Eve Sandberg,
Sun Sentinel,
16 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The cross-border clashes, which erupted late last month, have shown no signs of abating despite efforts by China and Turkey to broker a ceasefire.—
MUNIR AHMED,
Arkansas Online,
15 Mar. 2026
-
Defense was absent from the Nuggets’ game plan early in this clash, though, and Murray Supreme was nowhere to be seen.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
15 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Given her reputation and TikTok-famous opener Ella Langley, the badge line was a madhouse.—
Deborah Sengupta Stith,
Austin American Statesman,
17 Mar. 2026
-
In the fourth quarter, Soldier Field was an absolute madhouse with 60,000-plus waving towels, chewing fingernails, frothing at the mouth and … grating cheese?—
Jon Greenberg,
New York Times,
11 Jan. 2026
Noun
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By processing large volumes of data quickly, AI can help determine which drones represent actual threats and which might be acting as decoys within a swarm.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
14 Mar. 2026
-
The mounting toll has intensified concerns over how to counter drone swarms without depleting interceptor stockpiles that cost millions of dollars each to replace.—
Ashley Carnahan,
FOXNews.com,
14 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The Longhorns have won the turnover battle in all but three of their games.—
Danny Davis,
Austin American Statesman,
20 Mar. 2026
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When Jokic was out in January, the Nuggets understood that the ideal upset formula involved winning the possession battle.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
19 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Scrum.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scrum. Accessed 20 Mar. 2026.
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