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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of scrum
An hour after the game ended, as Gonzalez was wrapping up his postgame media scrum, Jayson Tatum popped his head into the locker room.
—
Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 23 Dec. 2025
Saunders made contact with an official who was trying to break up the scrum.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 15 Dec. 2025
At one point, eight different skaters were either in the blue paint around Blackwood or within a stick’s length of the scrum.
—Corey Masisak, Denver Post, 5 Dec. 2025
The result of the punch being thrown turns into a scrum, with Chase clearly upset at what transpired.
—James Brizuela, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scrum
Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 23 Dec. 2025
Saunders made contact with an official who was trying to break up the scrum.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 15 Dec. 2025
At one point, eight different skaters were either in the blue paint around Blackwood or within a stick’s length of the scrum.
—Corey Masisak, Denver Post, 5 Dec. 2025
The result of the punch being thrown turns into a scrum, with Chase clearly upset at what transpired.
—James Brizuela, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scrum
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scrum
Noun
-
Ultimately, the popular Lake Eola Farmer’s Market could relocate to a portion of the street to help bring throngs of people, which would also benefit businesses there as city leaders have tried for years to bolster retail offerings.—
Ryan Gillespie,
The Orlando Sentinel,
12 Jan. 2026
-
Much to Jack’s surprise, Anna is among the throng of local press.—
Sam Reed,
Glamour,
9 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Things then turned violent when someone tried to lunge at Black as marshals walked him out of the courtroom, leading to a skirmish appearing to involve about a dozen people.—
Brian Niemietz,
New York Daily News,
2 Jan. 2026
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Other conflict hotspots include India/Pakistan following a deadly skirmish in 2025, Congo/Rwanda, and the ongoing civil war in Sudan.—
The Week UK,
TheWeek,
31 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
Its trading floor — the setting for most of the hostile financial bedlam — was last seen smothered in tarpaulin while awaiting closure after the bank was acquired by an Egyptian sovereign wealth fund.—
Alex Ritman,
Variety,
5 Jan. 2026
-
Boise State isn’t immune to the struggles brought on by the transfer bedlam.—
Shaun Goodwin,
Idaho Statesman,
1 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Her defensive effort led to a transition 3-pointer for Maddie Scherr that electrified the home crowd for TCU.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
8 Jan. 2026
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Minneapolis police and deputies with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office are still on the scene for crowd control measures, and metal gates have been set up to keep protesters at bay.—
WCCO Staff,
CBS News,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The clashes have since descended into an all-out civil war, characterized by ethnic violence, attacks on civilians and atrocities committed by all sides, according to humanitarian groups and foreign governments.—
ByGuy Davies,
ABC News,
9 Jan. 2026
-
Iranian state television aired images of clashes and fires, while the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported that several police officers were killed overnight, underscoring the increasingly violent nature of the confrontations.—
Efrat Lachter,
FOXNews.com,
9 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
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
-
Instead of the orgiastic madhouse that fans of Monster and American Horror Story have grown accustomed to, Devil in Disguise is a somber affair, as aesthetically chilly as a December in Des Plaines, Illinois.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
15 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The city is in a valley, so nearly every building has a view—on this January morning, of fires dotting the hills and little, loud aircraft flying in all directions, like a mosquito swarm on a hot night.—
Gisela Salim-Peyer,
The Atlantic,
5 Jan. 2026
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The 236-foot former drug-runner ship Hilma Hooker offers one of the most impressive wreck dives in the region, though the vertical walls at The Cliff, vibrant reefs at Sweet Dreams, and swarms of sealife at Salt Pier are just as unforgettable.—
Carley Rojas Avila,
Travel + Leisure,
4 Jan. 2026
Noun
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This was not a rare occurrence at the university, where the presence of many students depended on the outcome of factional battles in their countries of origin.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
16 Jan. 2026
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In fact, filming the entire episode was quite the experience as the actress spent a lot of time arguing with herself as Maddie and Sara engaged in a battle of wills for control over the call center.—
Sabienna Bowman,
PEOPLE,
16 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Scrum.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scrum. Accessed 18 Jan. 2026.
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