as in skirmish
a physical dispute between opposing individuals or groups
several chairs were knocked over in the scuffle
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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
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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
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Examples of scuffle in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Bernie Pleskoff, Forbes, 3 Oct. 2024
The Bulls, meanwhile, scuffled to just 13 wins (a .260 winning percentage) during a season shortened to 50 games.
—Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 23 Sep. 2024
The vigil took place one week after the deadly encounter between Penny and Neely, who scuffled on a subway train heading toward the Broadway-Lafayette station May 1, 2023, after Neely became aggressive.
—Graham Rayman, New York Daily News, 8 Aug. 2024
The rest of the Dodgers’ previously scuffling bullpen — which had the fifth-worst reliever ERA in the majors in July — kept stringing together zeroes from there.
—Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 4 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for scuffle 
Verb
Vogt has deftly used his entire roster; giving players time off to regroup, and offering encouragement to those who may be scuffling.
—Bernie Pleskoff, Forbes, 3 Oct. 2024
The Bulls, meanwhile, scuffled to just 13 wins (a .260 winning percentage) during a season shortened to 50 games.
—Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 23 Sep. 2024
The vigil took place one week after the deadly encounter between Penny and Neely, who scuffled on a subway train heading toward the Broadway-Lafayette station May 1, 2023, after Neely became aggressive.
—Graham Rayman, New York Daily News, 8 Aug. 2024
The rest of the Dodgers’ previously scuffling bullpen — which had the fifth-worst reliever ERA in the majors in July — kept stringing together zeroes from there.
—Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 4 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for scuffle
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'scuffle.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Scuffle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scuffle. Accessed 4 Nov. 2024.
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