as in competitive
having or marked by a strong desire to win or be better than others
The competing salespeople were all trying to lure the same customers.
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Dissimilar Words
as in contending
to engage in a contest
prizefighters competing for the world heavyweight championship
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of competing
Todd Boss, Forbes.com, 15 May 2026
Establishing an entirely new and competing agency is merely the pursuit of a bureaucratic gravy train, and providing it with incentives to abuse power in order to boost its own coffers is an invitation to tyranny.
—Adam Summers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Apr. 2026
No more competing Monday night windows.
—Rowan Fisher-Shotton, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026
Truth is a public good Politics is not a seminar in absolute clarity, and competing claims are always part of the process.
—Stephanie A, The Conversation, 27 Jan. 2026
Like the Joker, O’Leary tends to give competing origin stories for his nickname.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 2 Jan. 2026
In comparison, Paramount Skydance, with its hostile and competing bid for WBD, saw its stock rise just over 29 percent so far in 2025 after closing at $13.50 on Dec. 29.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 29 Dec. 2025
Colorado River Compact figures no longer add up As always, the crux of this fight goes back to the Colorado River Compact and competing theories about how its flawed predictions of available water should be overcome.
—Brandon Loomis, AZCentral.com, 18 Dec. 2025
Men’s singles champion Jannik Sinner of Italy and women’s singles champion Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus return to defend their titles, along with American tennis stars Coco Gauff, Ben Shelton, Frances Tiafoe, Taylor Fritz, Madison Keys and more competing.
—Julia Teti, Footwear News, 25 Aug. 2025
Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 18 June 2026
Sixty years after the boycott, Africa has nine nations competing at this 48-team World Cup.
—Simon Hughes, New York Times, 17 June 2026
Rather than competing directly with luxury brands on scale or marketing spend, Printemps is positioning itself as a curator to identify emerging talent and quality of craftsmanship that is good value for money — no matter the price point.
—Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 17 June 2026
In 2026, amidst the political and cultural chaos of modern life and a few hundred competing TV shows each year, most series tend to go big for fear of going home without anyone noticing.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 17 June 2026
This time in track and field, competing in the 400, 800 and 1,500 meters in front of a hometown crowd.
—Derek James, CBS News, 17 June 2026
Bores’ race is now a proxy battle for two competing visions of how government should treat the technology industry and artificial intelligence.
—Matt Brown, Fortune, 17 June 2026
The president also has a lot competing for his attention.
—Eleanor Mueller, semafor.com, 17 June 2026
El Tri will have an edge competing at high altitude and with the support of home fans, but Mexico is winless in World Cup openers.
—Eduard Cauich, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2026
Adjective
From the non-competing tier, there’s a few teams who absolutely spent in the 2026 draft, no shade here.
—Todd Boss, Forbes.com, 15 May 2026
Establishing an entirely new and competing agency is merely the pursuit of a bureaucratic gravy train, and providing it with incentives to abuse power in order to boost its own coffers is an invitation to tyranny.
—Adam Summers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Apr. 2026
No more competing Monday night windows.
—Rowan Fisher-Shotton, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026
Truth is a public good Politics is not a seminar in absolute clarity, and competing claims are always part of the process.
—Stephanie A, The Conversation, 27 Jan. 2026
Like the Joker, O’Leary tends to give competing origin stories for his nickname.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 2 Jan. 2026
In comparison, Paramount Skydance, with its hostile and competing bid for WBD, saw its stock rise just over 29 percent so far in 2025 after closing at $13.50 on Dec. 29.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 29 Dec. 2025
Colorado River Compact figures no longer add up As always, the crux of this fight goes back to the Colorado River Compact and competing theories about how its flawed predictions of available water should be overcome.
—Brandon Loomis, AZCentral.com, 18 Dec. 2025
Men’s singles champion Jannik Sinner of Italy and women’s singles champion Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus return to defend their titles, along with American tennis stars Coco Gauff, Ben Shelton, Frances Tiafoe, Taylor Fritz, Madison Keys and more competing.
—Julia Teti, Footwear News, 25 Aug. 2025
Verb
Bowman has been competing at USA Basketball’s Under 17 World Cup training camp in Colorado.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 18 June 2026
Sixty years after the boycott, Africa has nine nations competing at this 48-team World Cup.
—Simon Hughes, New York Times, 17 June 2026
Rather than competing directly with luxury brands on scale or marketing spend, Printemps is positioning itself as a curator to identify emerging talent and quality of craftsmanship that is good value for money — no matter the price point.
—Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 17 June 2026
In 2026, amidst the political and cultural chaos of modern life and a few hundred competing TV shows each year, most series tend to go big for fear of going home without anyone noticing.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 17 June 2026
This time in track and field, competing in the 400, 800 and 1,500 meters in front of a hometown crowd.
—Derek James, CBS News, 17 June 2026
Bores’ race is now a proxy battle for two competing visions of how government should treat the technology industry and artificial intelligence.
—Matt Brown, Fortune, 17 June 2026
The president also has a lot competing for his attention.
—Eleanor Mueller, semafor.com, 17 June 2026
El Tri will have an edge competing at high altitude and with the support of home fans, but Mexico is winless in World Cup openers.
—Eduard Cauich, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for competing
Adjective
-
This competitive gap is costing American growers and American food consumers.—
Paul Meador,
The Orlando Sentinel,
13 June 2026
-
This could be a promotion or a new job offer from a competitive firm.—
Tabitha Parent,
PEOPLE,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
The series features six conversations — highlighting the arts of cinematography, composing, production design, editing, costume design, and visual effects — with the artisans behind Emmy-contending shows, all moderated by IndieWire’s Jim Hemphill.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
11 June 2026
-
Neither Rice nor Caicedo were playing for contending clubs in 2024, but both West Ham and Brighton, by virtue of broadcasting revenue or, in the latter’s specific case, the quality of their recruitment, possessed the financial resilience to name a price and then stick to it.—
Sebastian Stafford-Bloor,
New York Times,
11 June 2026
Adjective
-
Those ticket sales were above estimates of $35 million, though below the $50 million that rival studios argue a film of this scale should earn in its debut to justify its price tag.—
Rebecca Rubin,
Variety,
14 June 2026
-
And Yesavage’s ascent has been so impressive that even rival organizations are celebrating him.—
Peter Chawaga,
Forbes.com,
14 June 2026
Verb
-
And the conflict’s drain on men of fighting age has had ramifications for the rest of the Russian economy, which is now dealing with a wider labor crisis.—
Lauren Kent,
CNN Money,
14 June 2026
-
But somehow, the Valkyries went cold and the Storm kept fighting.—
Nathan Canilao,
Mercury News,
13 June 2026
Adjective
-
The driver was also placed on a non-driving status pending the results of the investigation.—
Carlos E. Castañeda,
CBS News,
24 Mar. 2026
-
Nor will this anti-driving VMT policy meaningfully affect the global climate.—
Jennifer Hernandez,
Washington Post,
20 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Google and Samsung have been racing toward the same goal by incorporating Gemini into Android in recent years.—
Lisa Eadicicco,
CNN Money,
13 June 2026
-
China's Spacesail is racing to build a rival stack.—
Robert J. Szczerba,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2026
Adjective
-
Others of you may be hustling to pay off — or gain — large amounts of capital.—
Kyle Thomas,
PEOPLE,
24 May 2026
-
But a social media user shared a video of Bryant inside that restroom Wednesday, hustling to wash his hands at the sink amid a group of fans, presumably before rejoining his team on the bench.—
Dan Woike,
New York Times,
22 May 2026
Verb
-
Los Angeles County firefighters are battling a growing fire near Palmdale that’s burned roughly 200 acres by Saturday night.—
Queenie Wong
Follow,
Los Angeles Times,
14 June 2026
-
The 34-year-old has not played for Brazil since October 2023 and has spent the last two years battling injuries.—
Emile Nuh,
CNN Money,
13 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Competing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/competing. Accessed 21 Jun. 2026.
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