as in rivalry
an earnest effort for superiority or victory over another
the effort to get their teenage son to keep his room clean is a constant tug-of-war
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tug-of-war
Now, her interviews can focus on her interests and influences and not on the tug-of-war between audience desires and a creative’s needs.
—
Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 26 Sep. 2025
Few municipalities from Key West to Tallahassee better reflect that tug-of-war than Hollywood.
—Jeffrey Steele, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Why show Franz playing tug-of-war naked at a sanitarium with a bunch of men wearing animal masks?
—Sam Bodrojan, IndieWire, 5 Sep. 2025
The lack of clarity over the legality of such facilities has led to a tug-of-war between the cannabis industry and state regulators.
—Robert McCoppin, Chicago Tribune, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tug-of-war
Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 26 Sep. 2025
Few municipalities from Key West to Tallahassee better reflect that tug-of-war than Hollywood.
—Jeffrey Steele, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Why show Franz playing tug-of-war naked at a sanitarium with a bunch of men wearing animal masks?
—Sam Bodrojan, IndieWire, 5 Sep. 2025
The lack of clarity over the legality of such facilities has led to a tug-of-war between the cannabis industry and state regulators.
—Robert McCoppin, Chicago Tribune, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tug-of-war
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tug-of-war
Noun
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There is also a danger that anger with Hamas and rivalries within the Palestinian community in Gaza could now explode, analysts say.—
Robert Birsel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
13 Oct. 2025
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The men’s opposing theories, murder versus suicide, became entangled in a rivalry over who had known and understood him best.—
Eren Orbey,
New Yorker,
13 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Keeping track of what both Pokémon are doing, each of their health bars, the animations for each attack and the battle log (which shows whether or not attacks have landed) takes a long time to get used to.—
Ryan Gaur,
Rolling Stone,
14 Oct. 2025
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With tensions rising, the film transforms into an unsettling black comedy as the colleagues descend into a battle of wills and wits.—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
Entertainment Weekly,
14 Oct. 2025
Noun
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While the murderous struggle is hard to hear in the video, the barking continued for several minutes and is unmistakable.—
Michael Ruiz,
FOXNews.com,
9 Oct. 2025
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Often taunted by tabloids for her unsmiling demeanor, Victoria shows off her sense of humor and gets real about some of the most difficult parts of her past, including her struggles with an eating disorder and almost losing her fashion business entirely.—
Ellise Shafer,
Variety,
9 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Once on campus, he’s drawn into the intense world of Black Greek life, where rival fraternities battle through stepping competitions that blend rhythm, tradition, and pride.—
Okla Jones,
Essence,
16 Oct. 2025
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Of their 16 meetings in all competitions between August 2004 and August 2007, 10 featured one goal or fewer.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Game 4 was high-intensity from the jump with Cristopher Sanchez and Tyler Glasnow going head-to-head in a pitchers' duel.—
Valentina Martinez,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Oct. 2025
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The hope is more of a fiery attitude could lead to more duels won.—
Joshua Kloke,
New York Times,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
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As coalition warfare becomes the norm, integrating data across multiple partners—each with distinct platforms and classification levels—can mean the difference between success and failure.—
Jason Ma,
Fortune,
13 Oct. 2025
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China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is moving its ground forces from traditional close-range tank warfare to long-range, beyond-visual-range combat, enabled by its latest generation of main battle tanks, according to a PLA Daily report published Monday.—
Kapil Kajal,
Interesting Engineering,
13 Oct. 2025
Noun
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If the peace holds, the region could enter a new era defined less by conflict than by the possibility of transformation, including the rebuilding of a post-Hamas Gaza and the normalization of Israeli relations with Saudi Arabia.—
Eric Cortellessa,
Time,
11 Oct. 2025
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Both led their people through seemingly impossible conflicts with grace and the ethos of nonviolence.—
Janine Di Giovanni,
Travel + Leisure,
11 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Call it a conversation, not a confrontation.—
Dianna Russini,
New York Times,
11 Oct. 2025
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The uptick in confrontations comes as the administration increases its efforts to deport millions of undocumented migrants, an approach critics say has led to aggressive enforcement tactics, due process violations and the mistreatment of migrants.—
Billal Rahman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tug-of-war.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tug-of-war. Accessed 16 Oct. 2025.
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