1
as in shuffling
to move heavily or clumsily
she scuffled along in shoes that were much too large for her
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in wrestling
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of scuffling
The second-place White Sox (35-31) moved within a half-game of scuffling Cleveland atop the AL Central.
—
CBS News, 10 June 2026
Videos showed youths running through the event and scuffling with police before officers shooed attendees away.
—Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 10 June 2026
The second-place White Sox (35-31) moved within a half-game of scuffling Cleveland atop the AL Central.
—ABC News, 9 June 2026
And with his Tigers scuffling and the whole sport closely monitoring Skubal’s progress, this uncharted territory is equal parts riveting and consequential.
—Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 26 May 2026
But Ramírez isn’t expected to inject life into a scuffling Cubs offense.
—Andy Martinez, Chicago Tribune, 24 May 2026
Los Angeles ultimately regrouped in plenty of time to win its second straight World Series, but the Dodgers are again proving fallible at a time when the Padres are scuffling.
—Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 May 2026
The return of Soto should help the Mets’ scuffling offense.
—Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 21 Apr. 2026
That pretty much tells the whole story right there, and with the offense scuffling out of the gate the club hasn’t been able to fight back whenever the starter gets chased early.
—Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 19 Apr. 2026
CBS News, 10 June 2026
Videos showed youths running through the event and scuffling with police before officers shooed attendees away.
—Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 10 June 2026
The second-place White Sox (35-31) moved within a half-game of scuffling Cleveland atop the AL Central.
—ABC News, 9 June 2026
And with his Tigers scuffling and the whole sport closely monitoring Skubal’s progress, this uncharted territory is equal parts riveting and consequential.
—Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 26 May 2026
But Ramírez isn’t expected to inject life into a scuffling Cubs offense.
—Andy Martinez, Chicago Tribune, 24 May 2026
Los Angeles ultimately regrouped in plenty of time to win its second straight World Series, but the Dodgers are again proving fallible at a time when the Padres are scuffling.
—Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 May 2026
The return of Soto should help the Mets’ scuffling offense.
—Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 21 Apr. 2026
That pretty much tells the whole story right there, and with the offense scuffling out of the gate the club hasn’t been able to fight back whenever the starter gets chased early.
—Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 19 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scuffling
Verb
-
The model of shuffling that the new result depends on, like Bayer and Diaconis’ before it, still assumes that the cards riffle down one by one, rather than in clumps.—
John Pavlus,
Quanta Magazine,
17 June 2026
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The Calgary Flames will play their final season at Scotiabank Saddledome before shuffling into Scotia Place in 2027.—
Julian McKenzie,
New York Times,
10 June 2026
Verb
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Instead of wrestling with fragmented software setups, companies can now deploy these tools seamlessly across voice, chat, email and SMS channels.—
Arthur Zaczkiewicz,
Footwear News,
16 June 2026
-
Park staff and local stakeholders are wrestling with what comes next.—
Kevin Strong,
CBS News,
15 June 2026
Verb
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That feeling solidified during their solo date, which included stomping grapes, exploring a winery and making a promise to open a special bottle of wine together one year later.—
Deirdre Durkan,
PEOPLE,
10 June 2026
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In the grainy video, an individual is seen appearing to throw a woman to the ground in the North Philadelphia alley and then hitting her repeatedly in the head with a brick, kicking her, and stomping her face, WPVI reported.—
Bill Hutchinson,
ABC News,
10 June 2026
Verb
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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
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But somehow, the Valkyries went cold and the Storm kept fighting.—
Nathan Canilao,
Mercury News,
13 June 2026
Verb
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Bryan’s stumbling responses, under questioning from the legendary defense lawyer Clarence Darrow, left him humiliated.—
Michael Luo,
New Yorker,
14 June 2026
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The Grimm Brothers fairy tale follows a pair of famished siblings who get lost in the woods and entrapped by a child-eating witch, after stumbling upon her cottage made of candy.—
Patrick Ryan,
USA Today,
13 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Scuffling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scuffling. Accessed 21 Jun. 2026.
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