Definitions

sparring

[spahr-ing] / ˈspɑr ɪŋ /

ADJECTIVE

fighting

Synonyms

STRONG

battling belligerent boxing brawling contending determined fencing hostile jousting martial militant skirmishing tilting warmongering wrestling

WEAK

angry argumentative bellicose combative contentious disputatious disputative ferocious hawkish jingoistic militaristic pugnacious quarrelsome ready to fight resolute scrappy truculent unbeatable under arms up in arms

Antonyms

STRONG

kind nice peaceful

WEAK

peaceloving

NOUN

boxing

Synonyms

STRONG

battle mill prelim prizefighting pugilism slugfest

WEAK

glove game the ring

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“People are now using AI as a sparring partner, rather than just the internet as a research tool.”

From MarketWatch • Jun. 2, 2026

We did plenty of sparring very early on in my career.

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2026

So use it as a sparring partner, not a ghostwriter.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

Last week, the star posted a martial arts video on Instagram in which he hit a sparring partner with a combo before saying to the camera, “I don’t age, I level up.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 20, 2026

We did an hour of exercise, some combination of roadwork, skipping rope, calisthenics, or shadow boxing, followed by fifteen minutes of body work, some weight lifting and then sparring.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

sparring

Example Sentences

Related Words