1
as in brawl
a rough and often noisy fight usually involving several people
a dozen people were arrested after the donnybrook at the stadium
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2
as in altercation
an often noisy or angry expression of differing opinions
the kind of hot-button issue that inevitably creates a donnybrook in the halls of the statehouse
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of donnybrook
Saturday’s donnybrook at the Horseshoe may not have scared up the massive numbers that last year’s Ohio State-Michigan showdown delivered, but Fox’s broadcast of the 120th installment of The Game still ranks as the college football season’s second-biggest TV draw.
—
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 4 Dec. 2024
Once, according to a story pitcher George Brunet told Sports Illustrated, a manager’s argument with an umpire turned into an all-out donnybrook involving players and fans and photographers and reporters, too.
—Rustin Dodd, The Athletic, 26 Aug. 2024
But money has settled previous donnybrooks over new technologies.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 16 Feb. 2024
The donnybrook between Disney and Ron DeSantis keeps escalating, and what should be a dispute over corporate welfare has devolved into an unfortunate political brawl that both could lose.
—The Editorial Board, wsj.com, 27 Apr. 2023
See All Example Sentences for donnybrook
Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 4 Dec. 2024
Once, according to a story pitcher George Brunet told Sports Illustrated, a manager’s argument with an umpire turned into an all-out donnybrook involving players and fans and photographers and reporters, too.
—Rustin Dodd, The Athletic, 26 Aug. 2024
But money has settled previous donnybrooks over new technologies.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 16 Feb. 2024
The donnybrook between Disney and Ron DeSantis keeps escalating, and what should be a dispute over corporate welfare has devolved into an unfortunate political brawl that both could lose.
—The Editorial Board, wsj.com, 27 Apr. 2023
See All Example Sentences for donnybrook
Recent Examples of Synonyms for donnybrook
Noun
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That heated game ended in a post-match brawl that included Inter Miami players and a Seattle staff member throwing punches and Miami forward Luis Suarez spitting on a Sounders security official.—
Michelle Kaufman,
Miami Herald,
17 Sep. 2025
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McNamara’s shooting of Green quickly garnered controversy after it was established — by witnesses and security video — that Green was a peacemaker in a brawl that erupted inside the La Victoria restaurant next to San Jose State University, where Green had done a campus visit earlier in the day.—
Robert Salonga,
Mercury News,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Student accused of mocking Charlie Kirk death Camryn Giselle Booker, a student at Texas Tech University, was arrested on charges of assault after an altercation with students mourning the death of Charlie Kirk.—
Amanda Castro
Hannah Parry
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 Sep. 2025
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Campus police arrested a student at Texas Tech University in connection to an altercation with students who were mourning the death of Charlie Kirk, officials confirmed.—
Natalie Neysa Alund,
USA Today,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The real clash with liberals is not over how big government should be, but over what the state should be empowered to do.—
Allan J. Lichtman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Sep. 2025
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Their violent clash of characters in the Marvel series, which has been a solid performer on Disney+, underpinned the original Netflix action series.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
18 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Both sides dramatically hiked tariffs against each other during a months-long dispute earlier this year, disrupting global supply chains.—
Dave Smith,
Fortune,
19 Sep. 2025
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Tung Tung’s creator, Noxa, is currently involved in a copyright dispute with Steal A Brainrot, which resulted in the character disappearing from the game.—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
19 Sep. 2025
Noun
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However, lovers’ quarrels or difficulty dealing with children (hissy fits or meltdowns) might occur.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
16 Sep. 2025
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The outcome of that long-simmering family quarrel is never really in much doubt, but there are still a few neat surprises involving a couple of rare bottles of whiskey and the fate of two family businesses.—
Stephen Farber,
HollywoodReporter,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Purdy has his share of critics, and such critics may claim that continued fine play from Jones could set up a bit of a quarterback controversy in San Francisco.—
Robert Marvi,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
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Skip to content One summer in Brooklyn, a controversy broke out in my dog-park group chat.—
Arash Azizi,
The Atlantic,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The September 12 report shared that RBW had actually fired Lee in August, citing declining profitability, management difficulties, and disagreements over new artist direction.—
Jeff Benjamin,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
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Its first-ever color feature, In the Shadow of Honor, which was going to be filmed in Indonesia, was canceled due to disagreements between the two countries related to colonial war reparations.—
Michael Taube,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Yet two of the first three weekends on CU’s fight card have resembled the Kansas and Kansas State losses of 2024.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
13 Sep. 2025
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Naoya Inoue, who is one of the top pound-for-pound fighters and 30-0, is defending his super bantamweight title on Sunday in Japan, just hours after Álvarez and Crawford fight.—
Sarah Shephard,
New York Times,
13 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Donnybrook.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/donnybrook. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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