challenged

Definition of challengednext
past tense of challenge

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of challenged In a 6-3 decision along ideological lines, the justices sided with plaintiffs in a Louisiana case that challenged if the state's congressional maps relied too heavily on race to sort voters. Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 1 May 2026 Adger also allegedly threatened to kill officers and challenged them to fight, deputies said in reports citing a Sacramento police probable cause warrant. Darrell Smith may 1, Sacbee.com, 1 May 2026 The potential four-seat gain is the same as what Virginia Democrats expect from a recent redistricting referendum, which is being challenged in state court there. Bill Barrow, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026 Mfume is being challenged by Baltimore City Councilman Mark Conway, a junior councilman elected in 2020 with little to show in terms of real accomplishment. Bobby Zirkin, Baltimore Sun, 30 Apr. 2026 Mahan, the San Jose mayor who is also running in the moderate lane, challenged Becerra on policy specifics. Anne Bryson, CBS News, 30 Apr. 2026 The large-scale immigration after 1980 of tens of thousands of the Beta Israel, Ethiopian Jews whose Jewishness has sometimes been challenged by Orthodox rabbis, has generated considerable controversy and ethnic tension in Israel. Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Apr. 2026 But that map also was subsequently challenged in court, leading to the most recent Supreme Court ruling. ABC News, 30 Apr. 2026 Jacas specifically highlighted the players’ buy-in and how the staff challenged him physically and mentally during his time in the facility. Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 25 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for challenged
Verb
  • School Committee members extensively questioned the policy Wednesday, digging into how the success of the new guardrails would be monitored, how equity would be ensured across groups like multilingual learners and students with less technological resources and more.
    Grace Zokovitch, Boston Herald, 7 May 2026
  • Less than a week after that announcement, DIA put plans to commission a feasibility study on hold after Denver City Councilwoman Stacie Gilmore questioned why the airport didn’t first consult the community and residents around DIA.
    John Aguilar, Denver Post, 7 May 2026
Verb
  • But even at its most tender, Motown never dared to be as unabashedly sultry as the Ottavianos.
    Billie Bugara, Pitchfork, 26 Apr. 2026
  • Fallon even dared Coughlan to ask Dave Grohl — who is serving as musical guest with his band Foo Fighters — to be her best friend.
    Ellise Shafer, Variety, 25 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • If companies want to build data centers, for example, they should be required not only to absorb any electricity-cost increases but also to pay for upgrades to our grid infrastructure.
    Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 7 May 2026
  • City staffers are required to get approval before their travel begins, not after, but those expenses were included among more than two dozen expense reports from the mayor’s office, which were approved without discussion.
    Jeff Abell, Baltimore Sun, 7 May 2026
Verb
  • The Senate seat is the district’s only one contested in the May 19 primary.
    Rose Evans May 6, Idaho Statesman, 6 May 2026
  • The turnout was likely helped by the fact that all three races, which included the mayor’s seat, were contested and the Northwest school district had a bond proposal on the ballot.
    Rachel Royster May 5, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 May 2026
Verb
  • Zachary Schermele On the heels of a frightening shooting over the weekend, the royal address seemed to bring Washington together in a moment of relative unity at a time when it was needed.
    Kathryn Palmer, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2026
  • That was the only offense Noone needed.
    Steve Millar, Chicago Tribune, 29 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Iranian officials disputed those claims.
    Christopher Cann, USA Today, 5 May 2026
  • The story of how the Declaration of Independence came to be written has been told many times but remains disputed, if not hotly, then lukewarmly.
    Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
Verb
  • In April 28 letters to city and state officials, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon demanded that both Denver and Colorado stop enforcing the bans, acknowledge the laws are unconstitutional, and enter into consent decrees to ensure the bans are not enforced.
    Shelly Bradbury, Denver Post, 4 May 2026
  • On the way back home, the customer alleged that Kloter sent a different driver in his place who demanded an additional $224, saying Kloter had not paid them, according to the BBB.
    Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 4 May 2026
Verb
  • And now, everything that this series was building toward – everything this season has hinted at – comes down to one final game in a place the Magic desperately wanted to avoid.
    Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 2 May 2026
  • Two wealthy Germans—Karin Walter-Mommert, a racehorse owner, and Walter Gunz, the multimillionaire founder of MediaMarkt—also wanted to save the whale.
    Jessica Camille Aguirre, New Yorker, 2 May 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Challenged.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/challenged. Accessed 8 May. 2026.

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