SHOWDOWNS Synonyms: 41 Similar and Opposite Words

showdowns

noun

plural of showdown

as in confrontations

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for showdowns

Noun

Drama unfolds as tears are shed, confrontations occur and someone is asked to leave.

— Yamillah Hurtado, PEOPLE, 29 June 2026
Ever delves into catastrophic confrontations over fences, noise, and general bad behavior.

— K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 26 June 2026

Definition of confrontations

Noun

At a time when the news cycle seems to serve up nothing but conflict, crisis and woe, the World Cup offers shelter, a truly international event in which conflict is defined by long-term sports rivalries and questionable referee decisions.

— Culture Critic, Los Angeles Times, 1 July 2026
The Golden State Warriors are reportedly looking to pair James with Stephen Curry, which would turn one of the NBA's greatest rivalries into two of the game's greatest stars fighting for their fifth title together.

— Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 30 June 2026

Definition of rivalries

Noun

As with many Latin American and African teams, Paraguay defend deep and are extremely physical in duels and aerial battles.

— Jibin Joseph, PC Magazine, 3 July 2026
On Wednesday, Tillman won nine duels — the most of anyone who played on either side — and had five dangerous interceptions, a metric used in soccer that accounts for stopping an attack.

— Darren Sabedra, Mercury News, 2 July 2026

Definition of duels

Noun

By the time Apple wins its lawsuit against OpenAI, the decisive battles in the war might already be over.

— Reed Albergotti, semafor.com, 11 July 2026
Against Brazil, Solbakken’s side worked hard to leave their physically intimidating centre-forwards in one-on-one battles for long passes in behind.

— Jack Pitt-Brooke, New York Times, 11 July 2026

Definition of battles

Noun

Ryan argues in a June report by the Lowy Institute that future wars will reward militaries able to recognize battlefield change, absorb lessons and adapt faster than their opponents.

— David Kirichenko, Forbes.com, 7 July 2026
The Iran and Gaza wars have thrown that absence and European strategic impotence into sharp relief.

— Galip Dalay, Time, 7 July 2026

Definition of wars

Noun

Unlike basketball or baseball, pro football is far from the point where regular-season contests become meaningless, but that hasn’t stopped its fans from debating whether the NFL is sapping some of the magic that comes from football’s scarcity.

— Jacob Stern, The Atlantic, 10 July 2026
Besides the contests for governor, Congress and 12 legislative seats, there are two local races for probate judge in Manchester and Bridgeport.

— Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 9 July 2026

Definition of contests

Noun

Small commercial and military drones have become increasingly common in recent conflicts, performing reconnaissance, surveillance, and precision attack missions.

— Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 8 July 2026
Painful conflicts with family over Israel are common The survey finds that rifts are springing up within families and communities over Israel, even among religiously unaffiliated Jews.

— David Crary, Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2026

Definition of conflicts

Noun

Corona Centennial, which doesn’t usually perform well in passing competitions (the Huskies like to let their running game set up the pass), started the morning 4-0 and didn’t lose until its final game.

— Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 12 July 2026
For many teams, however, time was limited by players arriving late from club competitions, creating a delicate balance between adapting sufficiently while still reaching the tournament physically and mentally fresh.

— Alan McCall, New York Times, 11 July 2026

Definition of competitions

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.

Browse Nearby Words

showdown

showdowns

showed

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Showdowns.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/showdowns. Accessed 13 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of showdowns

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on showdowns

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

implacable

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Popular in Wordplay

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 10

Popular

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

Games & Quizzes