1
as in throngs
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 skirmishes
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 madhouses
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 scrums
Bedard even found himself in the middle of a couple of scrums, at one point earning an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty for apparently flipping a puck at Alexandre Carrier’s, uh, midsection.
—
Mark Lazerus, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025
Capitol hallways have become an endless series of partisan scrums and press conferences where the two sides play the blame game, occasionally to each others’ faces on camera in impromptu scuffles.
—Steven T. Dennis, Fortune, 11 Oct. 2025
Mark Lazerus, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025
Capitol hallways have become an endless series of partisan scrums and press conferences where the two sides play the blame game, occasionally to each others’ faces on camera in impromptu scuffles.
—Steven T. Dennis, Fortune, 11 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scrums
Noun
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Videos from Isfahan, Arak, and other cities show throngs of hijab-less women outdoors.—
Arash Azizi,
The Atlantic,
7 Nov. 2025
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By offering a solution to the throngs of independent resale stores that followed in the footsteps of buy-and-sell pioneers like Round Two, OS Group has been able to carve a lucrative niche in an otherwise crowded space.—
Riley Jones,
Footwear News,
4 Nov. 2025
Noun
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David Wolf, the executive director of the Legacy of the Plains Museum in Scottsbluff, said experts estimate that as many 10 people died for every mile of the trail ‒ perhaps as many as 20,000 travelers, plus an unknown number of Native Americans killed during skirmishes.—
Trevor Hughes,
USA Today,
3 Nov. 2025
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Amid the skirmishes that ensued, federal agents fired a chemical agent toward a protester at near-point-blank range, and security personnel later opened fire on a U-Haul truck that had backed up toward a barrier on the island’s bridge, injuring the driver and an apparent bystander.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
26 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The exercise also featured swarms of first-person-view (FPV) suicide drones launching precision strikes against mock enemy fortifications.—
Kapil Kajal,
Interesting Engineering,
5 Nov. 2025
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Twenty-two earthquakes were recorded in the Kamchatka region within a single day in early November 2025, demonstrating the potential for earthquake swarms in highly active zones.—
Hollie Silverman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Since Assad’s ousting, Syria has seen flare-ups of deadly sectarian violence, with clashes erupting between security forces and those loyal to the former president, including in Syria’s coastal Latakia region in March.—
Sophie Tanno,
CNN Money,
9 Nov. 2025
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As for South Sudan, a senior United Nations official said earlier this week that the ongoing conflict in Sudan is causing destabilization in South Sudan, including armed clashes and food insecurity.—
Dan Gooding,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
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The book, which is from Australia, follows Bee and her fellow runaways, who discover a new friend, Paco, is a Lost Boy from Neverland who needs them to fight hordes of pirates led by a merciless new leader.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
4 Nov. 2025
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Enjoy large-scale hack-and-slash combat, infused with the unique Zonai technology to devastate enemy hordes.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
1 Nov. 2025
Noun
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The Democratic crackup that’s now underway in Washington is distracting the party from a series of brutal fights just ahead that will culminate in next year’s midterms.—
Burgess Everett,
semafor.com,
10 Nov. 2025
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Martin's fights, namely her 1996 match against Deirdre Gogarty, brought women's boxing to a whole new audience.—
Ralphie Aversa,
USA Today,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
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The city bans most wild species altogether, except in places like zoos, circuses, or educational facilities.—
Quinn Clark,
jsonline.com,
30 Oct. 2025
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Advertisement And yet, at the turn of the 20th century, family-friendly circuses couldn’t compete with new movie houses and the spectacle of the feature film.—
Time,
Time,
30 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The bird flu affected some turkey flocks earlier, leaving the inventory lower this year than last.—
Betty Lin-Fisher,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
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The virus can spread easily when infected wild birds mix with commercial or backyard flocks.—
NPR,
NPR,
6 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Scrums.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scrums. Accessed 15 Nov. 2025.
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