as in clash
a physical dispute between opposing individuals or groups
a small tussle on the basketball court was quickly broken up
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to wrestle
to seize and attempt to unbalance one another for the purpose of achieving physical mastery
puppies tussling with one another, rolling over and over on the carpet
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of tussle
Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 25 Mar. 2026
During one of the shootings, Sheriff Shittu, a 30-year-old aspiring fashion designer, was fatally shot in the head after a tussle with a drunk patron who had groped his girlfriend earlier in the night.
—Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 14 Mar. 2026
Calin Van Paris, InStyle, 11 Mar. 2026
Like Breton, Ahmed has also tussled with X owner Musk, who campaigned for and donated to Trump in 2024 and spent several months last year working as a special government employee and overseeing the Department of Government Efficiency effort.
—Shannon Bond, NPR, 9 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for tussle
Noun
Clips of the incident went viral, and local police concluded on Tuesday that the Reacher star acted in self-defense in the tussle with a man named Ronnie Taylor.
—Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 25 Mar. 2026
During one of the shootings, Sheriff Shittu, a 30-year-old aspiring fashion designer, was fatally shot in the head after a tussle with a drunk patron who had groped his girlfriend earlier in the night.
—Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 14 Mar. 2026
Verb
Ready for a chopped, tussled look?
—Calin Van Paris, InStyle, 11 Mar. 2026
Like Breton, Ahmed has also tussled with X owner Musk, who campaigned for and donated to Trump in 2024 and spent several months last year working as a special government employee and overseeing the Department of Government Efficiency effort.
—Shannon Bond, NPR, 9 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for tussle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tussle
Noun
-
All three judges scored it 98-92 for the 29-year-old Briton, who sustained cuts over both eyes from head clashes.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
11 Apr. 2026
-
And the clash of ideologies must now be balanced on the backs of many hardworking people trying to keep their children out of institutional care and on the Medicaid providers that support them.—
DP Opinion,
Denver Post,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Thank you to the public servants wrestling with impossible decisions.—
DP Opinion,
Denver Post,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Shah lunged at Jalloh and started wrestling with him as both men were upright and standing, Ancheta said.—
Phil Helsel,
NBC news,
10 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Walker, in a 10-pitch skirmish, drew a walk.—
Matt Kawahara,
Houston Chronicle,
19 Apr. 2026
-
After a skirmish in Lexington the British forces faced a larger band of Minutemen in Concord.—
Kurt Snibbe,
Oc Register,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Mike Judd, a lawyer for a coalition of media organizations including The Associated Press that are fighting to preserve access, said Graf so far has focused on whether his rules inside the courtroom are being followed, not what the media is saying outside of court.—
Matthew Brown,
Chicago Tribune,
18 Apr. 2026
-
Ackman is famous for fighting his way through deals; launching aggressive campaigns that invest in companies and force management to adopt measures like cutting costs or spinning off assets.—
Amanda Gerut,
Fortune,
17 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The Navy has 16 warships — 11 destroyers, three amphibious assault ships, an aircraft carrier and a littoral combat ship — in the Middle East out of a battle force of roughly 300 total warships.—
Konstantin Toropin,
Chicago Tribune,
17 Apr. 2026
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The Navy has 16 warships — 11 destroyers, three amphibious assault ships, an aircraft carrier, and a littoral combat ship — in the Middle East out of a battle force of roughly 300 total warships.—
Konstantin Toropin,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Anderson alleged Sayers tried to take a cellphone from witnesses immediately after the attack, leading to a scuffle.—
Shelly Bradbury,
Denver Post,
14 Apr. 2026
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Initial reports said visitors, mostly young people, were crammed against a single entrance and a scuffle broke out between those trying to leave and enter the site.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
12 Apr. 2026
Noun
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There have been struggles in her first full season at Chelsea but Wiegman trusts her enormously, handing her the captain’s armband in Williamson’s absence for her 100th cap in the 1-0 win over Spain.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
20 Apr. 2026
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In recent years, Congress has shielded wildfire settlements from taxes, but legislation to do so was short-lived and a struggle to pass, leaving gaps between laws that risk saddling some survivors with a possible tax burden on their compensation.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
20 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tussle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tussle. Accessed 22 Apr. 2026.
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