as in wrestling
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
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tussling
So that tussle is still tussling.
—
Bethy Squires, Vulture, 9 Mar. 2026
The pair were caught tussling several times before Palmerston retired in 2020.
—Jill Lawless, Chicago Tribune, 15 Feb. 2026
Would Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic stay on the right side of the match officials when tussling with Gabriel and William Saliba?
—Carl Anka, New York Times, 21 Jan. 2026
Yet the index has sagged to the bottom of this two-month range and is again tussling with its 50-day moving average.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 16 Dec. 2025
The characters were distrustful of each other (because anybody could be the killer), and one of Warren’s favorite memories is the scene with her and Mull tussling to get out of a tight bar space at the same time.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 12 Dec. 2025
As a longtime Boulder resident, Dan used to climb the trees that were adjacent to Folsom in the ’70s to get a glimpse of CU tussling with those Oklahoma and Nebraska teams of old.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 23 Nov. 2025
Things got testy with the Mammoth jamming away at Korpisalo after the whistle and Nikita Zadorov took issue with it, tussling with Brandon Tanev.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 20 Oct. 2025
The unaccompanied minor change was made at least partially in response to a viral video that showed a group of teens tussling near a row of carnival games.
—Ryan Murphy, IndyStar, 5 Aug. 2025
Bethy Squires, Vulture, 9 Mar. 2026
The pair were caught tussling several times before Palmerston retired in 2020.
—Jill Lawless, Chicago Tribune, 15 Feb. 2026
Would Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic stay on the right side of the match officials when tussling with Gabriel and William Saliba?
—Carl Anka, New York Times, 21 Jan. 2026
Yet the index has sagged to the bottom of this two-month range and is again tussling with its 50-day moving average.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 16 Dec. 2025
The characters were distrustful of each other (because anybody could be the killer), and one of Warren’s favorite memories is the scene with her and Mull tussling to get out of a tight bar space at the same time.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 12 Dec. 2025
As a longtime Boulder resident, Dan used to climb the trees that were adjacent to Folsom in the ’70s to get a glimpse of CU tussling with those Oklahoma and Nebraska teams of old.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 23 Nov. 2025
Things got testy with the Mammoth jamming away at Korpisalo after the whistle and Nikita Zadorov took issue with it, tussling with Brandon Tanev.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 20 Oct. 2025
The unaccompanied minor change was made at least partially in response to a viral video that showed a group of teens tussling near a row of carnival games.
—Ryan Murphy, IndyStar, 5 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tussling
Verb
-
Albeit, there are some emotional stakes to the character’s arc of wrestling with his past mistakes, as well as to the love triangle between three people who truly care about each other, despite their pasts (and futures).—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
15 Mar. 2026
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The question most are wrestling with right now is, how long will the lag period — and friction — between these two cycles last?—
Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson,
semafor.com,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The Nuggets have been fighting one battle after another for the last week, facing four Western Conference playoff teams in four different cities.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
15 Mar. 2026
-
Coalitions of national and local news organizations, including The Associated Press, have been fighting to preserve media access in the case.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
14 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tussling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tussling. Accessed 21 Mar. 2026.
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