as in rivalry
an earnest effort for superiority or victory over another
the annual fall face-off between these traditional rivals is a big event for both football-mad colleges
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Recent Examples of face-off
Chris Morris, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2024
The New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers, two of the most storied franchises in Major League Baseball history, face-off Friday in the World Series for the first time since 1981.
—Annette Choi, CNN, 25 Oct. 2024
Kaitlin Lange, The Indianapolis Star, 4 Nov. 2024
Debate, which got the most interest in September when Trump and Harris faced off in Philadelphia.
Between the lines: Those top search terms are only the tip of the news iceberg.
—Noah Bressner, Axios, 5 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for face-off 
Noun
As if the match-up of teams from the two largest cities in the country—from opposite coasts—wasn’t enough to make league officials (and television executives) salivate, there’s also the face-off between the sport’s two hottest players.
—Chris Morris, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2024
The New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers, two of the most storied franchises in Major League Baseball history, face-off Friday in the World Series for the first time since 1981.
—Annette Choi, CNN, 25 Oct. 2024
Verb
Incumbent Republican Todd Rokita is facing off against Democrat Destiny Wells for attorney general.
—Kaitlin Lange, The Indianapolis Star, 4 Nov. 2024
Debate, which got the most interest in September when Trump and Harris faced off in Philadelphia.
Between the lines: Those top search terms are only the tip of the news iceberg.
—Noah Bressner, Axios, 5 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for face-off
Recent Examples of Synonyms for face-off
Noun
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The movie stars Matthew Broderick and Reese Witherspoon in a bitter rivalry during a high school election.Erik Kain, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024
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Eisenberg and Kieran Culkin play cousins whose tour through Poland in honor of their grandmother sparks some serious family rivalry.Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 3 Nov. 2024
Verb
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One of those women, an unidentified current cross country runner, shared her experience of having to compete against one of those athletes during the hearing.Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 20 Nov. 2024
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In September 2020, Wilson decided to make the switch and signed to compete in acrobatics and tumbling at Oregon.Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 20 Nov. 2024
Noun
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As other suburban Indiana school board races have become embroiled in culture war battles and heated partisan rhetoric in recent elections, school board races in Hendrick’s County have stayed out of the fray.Caroline Beck, The Indianapolis Star, 6 Nov. 2024
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And after the chaos Washington descended into following the 2020 election, analysts might be prudent to assume Trump wouldn’t take another loss without an intense battle.Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 5 Nov. 2024
Verb
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He's struggled with injuries over the last few seasons, but will now look to contribute on a top contending team.Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2024
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Overall, experts contend the best course of action is for managers and bosses to hear out their employees with empathy.Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 4 Nov. 2024
Noun
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The Cowboys’ biggest deliveries were notched during their Week 3 duel with Baltimore, which averaged 27.29 million viewers on Fox, trailing only the previous week’s Bengals-Chiefs broadcast on CBS (27.87 million) for bragging rights as the season’s top linear-TV draw.Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 5 Nov. 2024
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The Dodgers won the first two in L.A., Game 2 featuring the duel between rookie Bob Welch and Reggie Jackson.Jim Alexander, Orange County Register, 27 Oct. 2024
Verb
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As this incremental progress continues, scientists are racing to figure out why some frog species are more susceptible to Bd than others.Martin J. Kernan, Discover Magazine, 16 Nov. 2024
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Beyond basic chatbot capabilities, companies are racing to develop more sophisticated AI tools.Britney Nguyen, Quartz, 14 Nov. 2024
Noun
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In the current era of U.S.-Chinese strategic competition, North Korea’s value to China extends beyond its role as a buffer zone between Chinese and U.S. forces.Sungmin Cho, Foreign Affairs, 12 Nov. 2024
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The organising committee investigated and found that Jiang had violated competition rules in the preliminary round because she was helped by her teacher, Wang Runqiu, who was a contestant himself.Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK, theweek, 11 Nov. 2024
Noun
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But after Israel responded in a relatively muted way, both countries moved on from the confrontation.Carrie A. Lee, Foreign Affairs, 19 Nov. 2024
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Police have not said what the confrontation was about, but according to the documents, Hue allegedly pulled a pistol from his waistband, pointed it at the students and told them to run.Harry Harris, The Mercury News, 13 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near face-off
Cite this Entry
“Face-off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/face-off. Accessed 25 Nov. 2024.
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