slugfest

noun

slug·​fest ˈsləg-ˌfest How to pronounce slugfest (audio)
: a fight marked by the exchange of heavy blows
also : a heated dispute
a vocal slugfest

Examples of slugfest in a Sentence

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.
Notre Dame 24, Penn State 20 This game is shaping up to be a defensive slugfest, but Notre Dame's ability to control the line of scrimmage and make game-breaking plays gives them the edge. Paul Du Quenoy, Newsweek, 10 Jan. 2025 This was a slugfest between a great team and a really good team that was decided in the game’s trenches. James L. Edwards Iii, The Athletic, 4 Jan. 2025 The Cavs-Thunder matchup last week was as good as advertised, a thrilling up-and-down slugfest that had fans giddy for a postseason rematch. Sam Allard, Axios, 15 Jan. 2025 And in late 2015, amid a political slugfest over the fate of the pro-UNM Rustavi 2 television station, Saakashvili and his allies in Tbilisi were caught planning to use the showdown as a means to foment violence, presumably for political advantage. Michael Cecire, Foreign Affairs, 6 Oct. 2016 See all Example Sentences for slugfest 

Word History

First Known Use

1916, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of slugfest was in 1916

Dictionary Entries Near slugfest

Cite this Entry

“Slugfest.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/slugfest. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.

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