variants
or knock-down-and-drag-out
as in fierce
marked by bursts of destructive force or intense activity
the football game was a knock-down, drag-out battle between bitter rivals
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of knock-down, drag-out
This was a knock-down, drag-out fight — the kind of match that would make for excellent watching when Marvel Snap tournaments are up and running.
—
Ash Parrish, The Verge, 31 Jan. 2023
Last week’s knock-down, drag-out fight could just be the first of many this session as GOP lawmakers grapple with government spending, the debt ceiling and the situation at the border.
—Dallas News, 10 Jan. 2023
But both performers rode their SNL success to Hollywood superstardom, in turn validating the audience's appetite for inspired silliness and knock-down, drag-out belly-laughs.
—Dennis Perkins, EW.com, 13 Dec. 2022
As much as the streaming wars can feel like a knock-down, drag-out fight, Amazon can spend time on the ropes because streaming isn’t its core business.
—Angela Watercutter, Wired, 18 Mar. 2022
But rather than a knock-down, drag-out fight to the finish, this series is all about empowerment.
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 17 Feb. 2022
However, leaping in expecting an argument to become a knock-down, drag-out fight isn't the best way to go about your life.
—Tarot Astrologers, chicagotribune.com, 9 Feb. 2022
Its climactic scenes are the same as any classically satisfying sports movie’s: athletes (in this case, young Venus) making decisions about themselves, their worth, their futures, and bringing those notions to bear in a knock-down, drag-out match.
—K. Austin Collins, Rolling Stone, 19 Nov. 2021
The show features all the beats of a rom-com (an onion-like peeling of layers, a knock-down, drag-out fight, a grand, loving gesture that attempts to soothe it all) and even pays homage to a few of the genre mainstays.
—BostonGlobe.com, 15 Sep. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for knock-down, drag-out
Adjective
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The game between the fierce rivals was halted after 52 minutes due to fans throwing flares onto the pitch.—
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After the goalless draw in one of soccer’s fiercest rivalries, the Portuguese manager was yet again outspoken in his press conference.—
Adjective
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According to a recent survey by the Pew Research Center, nearly three-quarters of those polled disapproved of Mr. Trump’s pardons for people convicted of violent crimes, and more than half disliked his pardons for even those convicted of nonviolent offenses.—
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While keeping their relationship a secret for professional reasons, an unexpected promotion unravels their fraught romance, fueling a violent competition between the duo.—
Adjective
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It was destroyed in the Eaton Fire, which spread at ferocious speeds in high winds, eventually destroying more than 9,000 houses and buildings around Altadena, Calif.—
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Hudson’s father, Cecil, a logger, had a ferocious temper that scared even his own parents, who lived nearby.—
Adjective
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Cormack was furious, issuing a sharp rebuke, the official said.—
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According to the Sheriff’s Office: Following a furious chase through Cascade, the black Toyota Tundra pickup truck headed south on Idaho 55, weaving in and around traffic while deputies kept pace behind.—
Adjective
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Weak ash emissions were ongoing and the Landsat image also captures a volcanic plume drifting away from the summit in a northeasterly direction.—
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The refined tequila is crafted from single-source, 100% Blue Weber agave, harvested at peak maturity from the red volcanic highlands of Jalisco, Mexico.—
Adjective
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Nashville's Bad Idea is a wine bar and restaurant set in a former Presbyterian church that fell into disrepair after a vicious tornado.—
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By the time Hezbollah launched its bombardment of Israel in solidarity with Hamas' vicious attack on Israel, the militant Lebanese organization had managed to build a significant military capability under the nose of UNFIL and was more robust than ever before.—
Cite this Entry
“Knock-down, drag-out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/knock-down%2C%20drag-out. Accessed 1 Mar. 2025.
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