as in skirmish
a physical dispute between opposing individuals or groups
several chairs were knocked over in the scuffle
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in to shuffle
to move heavily or clumsily
she scuffled along in shoes that were much too large for her
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to wrestle
to seize and attempt to unbalance one another for the purpose of achieving physical mastery
the burglar and the homeowner briefly scuffled together in the dark
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of scuffle
Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 3 June 2025
Karbowski isn’t the only player who has scuffled a little bit for the Whip-Purs.
—Paul Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 8 May 2025
The Rays responded with three runs in the top of the fifth against Miami’s young right-hander Max Meyer, who continues to scuffle after a stellar start to the season.
—Isaac Azout, Miami Herald, 17 May 2025
Polls show the Israeli public wants a deal to bring back the remaining 59 hostages still held in Gaza and there were angry scenes outside parliament with dozens of protesters scuffling with police.
—Maayan Lubell, USA Today, 6 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for scuffle
Verb
As the Royals’ offense has scuffled this season, fans have been dreaming of the team added Caglianone’s bat, even though he was drafted less than a year ago.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 3 June 2025
Karbowski isn’t the only player who has scuffled a little bit for the Whip-Purs.
—Paul Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 8 May 2025
The Rays responded with three runs in the top of the fifth against Miami’s young right-hander Max Meyer, who continues to scuffle after a stellar start to the season.
—Isaac Azout, Miami Herald, 17 May 2025
Polls show the Israeli public wants a deal to bring back the remaining 59 hostages still held in Gaza and there were angry scenes outside parliament with dozens of protesters scuffling with police.
—Maayan Lubell, USA Today, 6 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for scuffle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scuffle
Noun
-
The protests were substantially peaceful, although small skirmishes resulting in arrests, damage to property and injuries broke out when police tried to disperse the crowd with rubber bullets and tear gas.—
Megan Schrader,
Denver Post,
22 June 2025
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The Fever emerged with an 88-71 win after a game that featured a pair of skirmishes, including a fight in the final minute that led to three ejections.—
Chuck Schilken,
Los Angeles Times,
18 June 2025
Verb
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Nicolo Barella would often drop between Stefan de Vrij and right centre-back Matteo Darmian or pull wide outside of Urawa’s defensive block to kickstart Inter’s possession, meaning the Japanese side were comfortable shuffling from side to side with the game in front of them.—
James Horncastle,
New York Times,
21 June 2025
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The latest major example of this reliable horror subgenre shuffling (or in this case running) into theaters is 28 Years Later.—
James Grebey,
Time,
20 June 2025
Verb
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Back then, traveling meant paying close attention to the roads, road signs, mile markers and more, all while wrestling with the flimsy paper map.—
Jason Foodman,
Forbes.com,
25 June 2025
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Two of them wrestled on the grass, and a few climbed onto a twisted tree trunk to pose for a group photo that would be sent to the owners.—
Steve Lopez,
Mercury News,
24 June 2025
Noun
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The clash between the two drivers was likely carried forward from the previous race in Detroit, where McLaughlin crashed into Siegel from behind, causing him to get knocked out of the race.—
Saajan Jogia,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 June 2025
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India, the fanatical cricket country, against England, the founding fathers of the game, will be a clash of styles.—
Jacob Tanswell,
New York Times,
19 June 2025
Verb
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Scott made the turn at even-par but a bogey-bogey-double bogey stumble from holes Nos. 14-16 ended his tournament.—
Gabby Herzig,
New York Times,
16 June 2025
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Then in 2022, with escalating inflation and consumer pressure, the stock stumbled again with a 63% drop.—
Trefis Team,
Forbes.com,
16 June 2025
Verb
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The city argued the policy was confidential, and would interfere with the department’s ability to fight crime.—
Harrison Mantas,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
26 June 2025
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The fire has been fought by 16 engines, seven water tenders, three dozers and three hand crews.—
CA WILDFIRE BOT,
Sacbee.com,
26 June 2025
Noun
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That same month, Adams withdrew his candidacy for the Democratic primary, saying the legal battle had prevented him from effectively campaigning.—
Solcyré Burga,
Time,
25 June 2025
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After a competitive bidding battle, Amazon MGM Studios has landed the package for a live-action movie revolving around the Bratz doll line with Kim Kardashian and Picturestart on board to produce.—
Justin Kroll,
Deadline,
25 June 2025
Verb
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The dinos will stomp back into theaters just in time to set off major fireworks at the Fourth of July holiday, or at least that’s the hope.—
Pamela McClintock,
HollywoodReporter,
12 June 2025
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To close out the show, Megan stomped down the catwalk in the Dipped in Gold One-Piece from her swimwear collection, made in collaboration with Walmart.—
Starr Bowenbank,
People.com,
30 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Scuffle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scuffle. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
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