1
: a fight or contest between individuals or groups
2
3
: active fighting in a war : action
casualties suffered in combat
combated or combatted; combating or combatting
: to engage in combat : fight
1
: to fight with : battle
2
: to struggle against
especially
: to strive to reduce or eliminate
combat pollution
1
: relating to combat
combat missions
2
: designed or destined for combat
combat boots
combat troops
Examples of combat in a Sentence
Noun
Some of these soldiers have never seen combat.
He was killed in combat.
Verb
The drug helps combat infection.
She dedicated her life to combating poverty.
Exercise can help combat the effects of stress.
The mayor pledged to combat crime.
They have been combating the rebels for months.
Recent Examples on the Web
Jeff Winter, CNN Money, 31 Dec. 2025
Overseas, local governments have been taking charge to combat overtourism by implementing visas, tourist taxes, cruise ship docking limits, and short-term rental restrictions.
—Karla Walsh, Southern Living, 31 Dec. 2025
Center Square, The Washington Examiner, 2 Jan. 2026
Increasingly under the spotlight, Walz, who is up for reelection this year, has taken several actions to combat the scams, including directing state agencies to intensify their efforts to identify and root out fraud.
—Christopher Cann, USA Today, 2 Jan. 2026
Zach Wichter, USA Today, 15 Dec. 2025
The continuing non-combat losses and training flight failures point to persistent operational and maintenance challenges within Russia’s air fleet as the war grinds on.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 13 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for combat
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Noun
Two years later, Judge John Toomey, a Vietnam War combat veteran, worked with the Suffolk district attorney’s office, the local VA health care system and a small group of volunteers known as the Green Jackets to create the Suffolk County Veterans Treatment Court.
—Jeff Winter, CNN Money, 31 Dec. 2025
Overseas, local governments have been taking charge to combat overtourism by implementing visas, tourist taxes, cruise ship docking limits, and short-term rental restrictions.
—Karla Walsh, Southern Living, 31 Dec. 2025
Verb
In a news release, DeWine outlined a series of safeguards that have been in place for years to combat potential fraud at the nearly 5,200 child care facilities in the state that receive taxpayer funds.
—Center Square, The Washington Examiner, 2 Jan. 2026
Increasingly under the spotlight, Walz, who is up for reelection this year, has taken several actions to combat the scams, including directing state agencies to intensify their efforts to identify and root out fraud.
—Christopher Cann, USA Today, 2 Jan. 2026
Adjective
Military aircraft were previously exempt from the same requirement, but in the aftermath of January's crash, a bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation to require military planes to broadcast their location during non-combat missions.
—Zach Wichter, USA Today, 15 Dec. 2025
The continuing non-combat losses and training flight failures point to persistent operational and maintenance challenges within Russia’s air fleet as the war grinds on.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 13 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for combat
Cite this Entry
“Combat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/combat. Accessed 3 Jan. 2026.
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