confront

verb

con·​front kən-ˈfrənt How to pronounce confront (audio)
confronted; confronting; confronts

transitive verb

1
: to face especially in challenge : oppose
confront an enemy
The mayor was confronted by a group of protesters.
2
a
: to cause to meet : bring face-to-face
confront a reader with statistics
confronted her with the evidence
b
: to meet face-to-face : encounter
confronted the possibility of failure
confrontal noun
confronter noun

Examples of confront in a Sentence

They confronted the invaders at the shore. She confronted him about his smoking. The country is reluctant to confront its violent past. The photographs confront the viewer with images of desperate poverty. I confronted her with the evidence.
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Where to watch:Disney+, video on demand 6. 'Civil War' With his riveting cautionary tale, director Alex Garland takes our current political and cultural divide to a disturbing place and makes audiences confront what an actual modern civil war would look like. Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 12 Dec. 2024 In a poignant sequence in the first book, Tara is confronted, each morning, with having to explain to Thomas what has happened, and what will occur again. Rhian Sasseen, The Atlantic, 12 Dec. 2024 Lyons also was there and tried to talk Gastineau out of confronting Favre and that Gastineau’s wife, Jo Ann, later returned to Favre’s table and apologized for her husband, ESPN wrote. Chuck Schilken, Los Angeles Times, 11 Dec. 2024 Any significant new economic coercion could also face headwinds from Washington’s crucial Gulf allies, whose leaders now prefer to co-opt rather than confront Tehran. Suzanne Maloney, Foreign Affairs, 10 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for confront 

Word History

Etymology

Middle French confronter to border on, confront, from Medieval Latin confrontare to bound, from Latin com- + front-, frons forehead, front

First Known Use

circa 1568, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of confront was circa 1568

Dictionary Entries Near confront

Cite this Entry

“Confront.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/confront. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

confront

verb
con·​front kən-ˈfrənt How to pronounce confront (audio)
1
: to face especially in challenge : oppose
confront an enemy
2
: to bring face-to-face : cause to meet
confronted with difficulties
confrontation
ˌkän-(ˌ)frən-ˈtā-shən
noun

Legal Definition

confront

transitive verb
con·​front kən-ˈfrənt How to pronounce confront (audio)
: to face or bring face-to-face for the purpose of challenging especially through cross-examination
the accused shall enjoy the right…to be confronted with the witnesses against himU.S. Constitution amend. VI
confrontation noun

More from Merriam-Webster on confront

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