1
as in to fight
to oppose (someone) in physical conflict
a general eager to combat the enemy on his own ground
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2
as in to oppose
to strive to reduce or eliminate
must marshal all of our resources to combat this disease
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1
as in field
active fighting during the course of a war
a soldier who served throughout the war without actually seeing combat
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2
as in skirmish
a physical dispute between opposing individuals or groups
the two stags entered a furious combat for dominance of the herd
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3
as in battle
an earnest effort for superiority or victory over another
the fierce ideological combat between the religionists and the secularists
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of combat
Nick Coltrain, Denver Post, 14 Jan. 2026
California is pushing to answer that question, with laws and legislation meant to combat what is increasingly a rogue federal police force that is seemingly acting, too often violently, without restraint.
—Los Angeles Times, 14 Jan. 2026
Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 6 Jan. 2026
Hugh drives most of the combat, with a variety of guns and a jetpack, while Diana makes life easier for him by hacking into enemy systems and robots.
—Alan Bradley, Space.com, 5 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for combat
Verb
For the next 120 days, Colorado lawmakers will navigate another massive budget hole, the reality of likely Medicaid cuts and pressure to address ongoing affordability challenges — all while combating a federal government that has increasingly targeted the state.
—Noun
The report noted that the Navy called what the former combat pilot and astronaut did an act of sedition.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for combat
Verb
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Fifty years ago, my father was a Vietnamese soldier who fought as an ally to the United States Armed Forces in Vietnam.—
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Dickens’ appearance was during an ongoing back and forth fight between the city and MARTA over transit expansion in Atlanta.—
Verb
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The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System passed a resolution Thursday opposing the expansion of Waymo’s robotaxis.—
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Various Christian faith healing groups, which believe in prayer over medicine, and Christian Scientists, which believe illness is an illusion, oppose vaccines.—
Noun
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Coming off two straight nine-win seasons, Dykes has seen enough confirmation on the field that TCU has plenty of talent already inside the building; most of it just needs to continue to develop.—
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Borregales banged home a 35-yard field to give the home team a 6-3 lead heading into halftime.—
Noun
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Things then turned violent when someone tried to lunge at Black as marshals walked him out of the courtroom, leading to a skirmish appearing to involve about a dozen people.—
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Other conflict hotspots include India/Pakistan following a deadly skirmish in 2025, Congo/Rwanda, and the ongoing civil war in Sudan.—
Noun
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This was not a rare occurrence at the university, where the presence of many students depended on the outcome of factional battles in their countries of origin.—
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In fact, filming the entire episode was quite the experience as the actress spent a lot of time arguing with herself as Maddie and Sara engaged in a battle of wills for control over the call center.—
Noun
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Good's defenders – including city and state leaders – are calling what happened an unjustified attack; federal authorities say the agent was acting in self-defense.—
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In Kyiv, a CNN reporter said that the attack began around midnight, starting with multiple drone strikes on residential buildings.—
Noun
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The clashes have since descended into an all-out civil war, characterized by ethnic violence, attacks on civilians and atrocities committed by all sides, according to humanitarian groups and foreign governments.—
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Iranian state television aired images of clashes and fires, while the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported that several police officers were killed overnight, underscoring the increasingly violent nature of the confrontations.—
Noun
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After sending the cheeseheads packing with the biggest playoff comeback in franchise history, Ben Johnson spiced up the rivalry with some salty language.—
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As interbranch rivalry morphed into systemic partisan competition, a judiciary dominated by Republican appointees began consolidating its authority at Congress’s expense.—
Cite this Entry
“Combat.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/combat. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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