1
as in candidates
one who seeks an office, honor, position, or award
a strong contender for the mayoral position
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in competitors
one who strives for the same thing as another
several contenders competing for the title of the city's best Italian restaurant
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of contenders
Former Fed governor Kevin Warsh, BlackRock executive Rick Rieder, Fed governor Christopher Waller, and White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett are among the top contenders for the position.
—
David Zimmermann, The Washington Examiner, 30 Jan. 2026
Fans will want to keep tabs on whom title contenders and district title favorites — such as Aledo, Southlake Carroll and North Crowley — choose to face.
—Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 Jan. 2026
The lineup of performers includes a mix of past Grammy winners, first-time nominees, and this year's Best New Artist contenders.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Jan. 2026
The Golden State Warriors are no longer serious contenders, and certainly not after Jimmy Butler’s season-ending injury.
—David Aldridge, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2026
Other original-screenplay contenders to have faced this range from Tár to Selma.
—David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 29 Jan. 2026
Marketing, communications, and content roles also remain strong contenders.
—Laura Begley Bloom, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
In the wide-open Eastern Conference, the Knicks (29-18) as currently constituted are contenders.
—Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 29 Jan. 2026
Many of the Oscar contenders for best picture will return to the big screen before Hollywood’s biggest night.
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 23 Jan. 2026
David Zimmermann, The Washington Examiner, 30 Jan. 2026
Fans will want to keep tabs on whom title contenders and district title favorites — such as Aledo, Southlake Carroll and North Crowley — choose to face.
—Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 Jan. 2026
The lineup of performers includes a mix of past Grammy winners, first-time nominees, and this year's Best New Artist contenders.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Jan. 2026
The Golden State Warriors are no longer serious contenders, and certainly not after Jimmy Butler’s season-ending injury.
—David Aldridge, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2026
Other original-screenplay contenders to have faced this range from Tár to Selma.
—David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 29 Jan. 2026
Marketing, communications, and content roles also remain strong contenders.
—Laura Begley Bloom, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
In the wide-open Eastern Conference, the Knicks (29-18) as currently constituted are contenders.
—Peter Sblendorio, New York Daily News, 29 Jan. 2026
Many of the Oscar contenders for best picture will return to the big screen before Hollywood’s biggest night.
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 23 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for contenders
Noun
-
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent screened the qualifying candidates, whittling the list down to five and then four.—
Jeff Cox,
CNBC,
30 Jan. 2026
-
No wonder Rieder vaulted to the top of the list of Fed chair candidates on prediction markets over the past few days.—
Matt Egan,
CNN Money,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
How does your brand's value growth compare to category competitors?—
Steven Wolfe Pereira,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
-
This constitution, which Anthropic just updated, is one thing that differentiates Anthropic’s AI models from those offered by its competitors, such as OpenAI, Google, Meta, and Elon Musk’s xAI.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The fun of The Mole is in putting yourself in the contestants' shoes; like them (well, all but one of them), the audience is not informed of who the mole actually is until the very end.—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 Feb. 2026
-
The menu goes beyond basic survival food and leans into the show's reward challenges, giving fans a literal taste of what contestants eat in Fiji.—
Tania Francois,
CBS News,
31 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Mich -- Mila Holloway scored a career-high 26 points to help Michigan outlast Michigan State in overtime in the rivals' first matchup with both teams ranked in the top 15 of The Associated Press women's college basketball poll.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
2 Feb. 2026
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In early May, with United due to host arch-rivals Liverpool in the Premier League during a time in which Covid-19 restrictions meant fans were not allowed into stadiums, supporters plotted a huge protest around one of the most high-profile fixtures in English football.—
Chris McKenna,
New York Times,
1 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Starbucks has other challengers, like the fast-growing drive-thru chains 7 Brew, Scooter’s Coffee and Dutch Bros.—
Dee-Ann Durbin,
Fortune,
31 Jan. 2026
-
Levine Cava was reelected in 2024 by a wide margin over a mostly Republican field of challengers.—
Garrett Shanley,
Miami Herald,
31 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Contenders.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/contenders. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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