1
as in skirmish
a physical dispute between opposing individuals or groups
the police broke up the fracas in the bar and threw both combatants in the lockup
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in brawl
a rough and often noisy fight usually involving several people
police preparing for any fracas that might follow the soccer game
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 fracas
The fracas has also put increasing pressure on the Pentagon and embattled Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
—
semafor.com, 8 Dec. 2025
Grand Canyon got a controversial goal in the 88th minute from superstar Senegalese freshman Junior Diouf in a classic smash-and-grab victory followed by a heated fracas at midfield between the teams.
—Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Nov. 2025
For all of these camps, the fracas at Alpha Genesis offered a new occasion to denounce the waste of taxpayer dollars on unseemly animal experiments.
—Ava Kofman, New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2025
Blue Jackets defenseman Ivan Provorov, standing behind Hagel, took exception and gave Hagel a forceful cross-check in the back, sending him lunging forward and drawing both teams into a fracas in the corner of the ice.
—Aaron Portzline, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fracas
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fracas
Noun
-
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.—
-
Other conflict hotspots include India/Pakistan following a deadly skirmish in 2025, Congo/Rwanda, and the ongoing civil war in Sudan.—
Noun
-
Investigators aren't saying if there's a connection between Henderson's death and brawls at the bar.—
-
The reminder didn’t dissuade at least five park visitors from participating in a 2023 brawl that was captured on video, showing a woman and man throwing punches at each other and wrestling before others joined in.—
Noun
-
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.—
-
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
-
During the altercation, the security guard shot and killed the man, McCabe said.—
-
In 2019, Dykstra had drug and terroristic threat charges dropped after an altercation with an Uber driver in New Jersey in 2018.—
Noun
-
With a high-stakes battle for the 2026 midterms looming, the Evergreen State appears poised to join the trend of states using congressional redistricting for partisan advantage.—
-
Rattler won the quarterback battle in training camp over Shough, but after going 1-7, Moore made the switch to his rookie.—
Noun
-
Davisboro, Georgia Police Chief Leondus Dixon told CBS News a fight broke out among inmates during visitation hours at Washington State Prison in Davisboro.—
-
Sheffey is jumping in the fight.—
Noun
-
There was nearly a second Girard scuffle.—
-
At least two other people are then seen joining in on the scuffle.—
Noun
-
While the midair dustups are trending down after the Federal Aviation Administration adopted a zero-tolerance policy and increased fines almost five years ago, the incidents will end up close to double the three-year average before the pandemic.—
-
The episode lands after a stretch of Hollywood controversy, including a Kardashian-Jenner photo dustup in which images of Harry and Meghan at Kris Jenner’s 70th-birthday party were posted and swiftly deleted following a request from the Sussexes’ team.—
Cite this Entry
“Fracas.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fracas. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share