How to Use spar in a Sentence

spar

1 of 2 verb
  • Now, the attorneys will have to spar over the next court date.
    Darcie Moran, Detroit Free Press, 3 Dec. 2020
  • Romero claims they were supposed to share the ring before that, but Davis twice backed out of plans to spar with him.
    Brian Mahoney, ajc, 27 May 2022
  • Nobody passed that test that long who was not able to spar with them and maintain their own.
    Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 10 Dec. 2023
  • Lawyers for Hochul and Adams have sparred in court over how best to house and expend resources to care for the migrants.
    Anthony Izaguirre, BostonGlobe.com, 24 Aug. 2023
  • Then the two seemed to spar over whose victims were more important.
    Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2023
  • Late last year, Biden and Netanyahu publicly sparred with over plans for post-war Gaza.
    Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN, 11 Mar. 2024
  • The two would spar about height, but Wahlberg avoided a direct measure-off.
    Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY, 17 Feb. 2022
  • Garcia was gassed, mid weight cut, after 12 rounds of hard sparring in his boots.
    Tyler R. Tynes, Los Angeles Times, 27 Apr. 2023
  • As the number of candidates dwindles, there may soon only be Trump to spar with.
    Averi Harper, ABC News, 11 Jan. 2024
  • The nearly-nine-minute freestyle went after Colombian artist J Balvin, who Residente had sparred with in the past.
    Julyssa Lopez, Rolling Stone, 23 Feb. 2024
  • Today lawmakers will spar about which changes make it over the finish line.
    Amanda Gokee, BostonGlobe.com, 6 Apr. 2023
  • And as the money starts moving, different parties could spar over how to spend it.
    Andrew Joseph, STAT, 1 Aug. 2021
  • None of the wrestlers were in the same weight class, forcing them to spar with teammates several weight classes above or below their own.
    Akeem Glaspie, The Indianapolis Star, 18 Feb. 2021
  • What if the sparring factions couldn’t agree on the best spots to build solar and wind farms, and instead wasted years arguing?
    Sammy Roth, Anchorage Daily News, 2 July 2023
  • Tony and Frances are two peas in a pain pod, and Canavale and McCarthy are a joy to watch as their characters snipe and spar their way toward recovery.
    San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Aug. 2021
  • For the next several hours, the men would spar round after round, landing at a score that no amount of trash talk could drown out: Mackey, 35 wins; McClain, 13.
    Ian Shapira, Washington Post, 24 Nov. 2023
  • But by the halfway point, the two Republicans were sparring with each other.
    Seema Mehta, Los Angeles Times, 9 Nov. 2023
  • During rivaling trips to Texas 325 miles apart, Biden and Trump sparred in remarks aired within a half-hour of each other.
    Joey Garrison, USA TODAY, 1 Mar. 2024
  • Kids here read Voltaire in middle school, and philosophers regularly spar on prime-time talk shows.
    Pamela Druckerman, The New York Review of Books, 31 Dec. 2020
  • Those consisted of lifting weights, jumping rope, and sparring with other members of the gym.
    Zoë Bernard, Rolling Stone, 4 June 2023
  • Aegon and Jacaerys spar despite being mismatched by size and age.
    Josh St. Clair, Men's Health, 26 Sep. 2022
  • Watching the real Nikki Haley spar with a fake Donald Trump was awkward—and not very funny.
    Esther Zuckerman, The Atlantic, 4 Feb. 2024
  • In the last year, Berkeley officials and the air district have sparred over whether the landfill-turned-park should upgrade its pollution controls.
    Tony Briscoe, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024
  • But Succession fans hoping the kids are ready to spar in a way similar to Shiv, Kendall, and Roman are in for some disappointment.
    Tori Latham, Robb Report, 14 Sep. 2023
  • Rosenberg and Dickey sparred over the issue of gun violence research.
    Owen Tucker-Smith, Los Angeles Times, 3 Aug. 2023
  • William’s younger brother Prince Harry, who has publicly sparred with the family, arrived alone.
    Danica Kirka and Jill Lawless, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2023
  • William's younger brother Prince Harry, who has publicly sparred with the family, arrived alone.
    Compiled By Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, Arkansas Online, 7 May 2023
  • The city and the Angels could spar on how that language should be interpreted and who should pay for significant upgrades.
    Bill Shaikin, Los Angeles Times, 25 May 2022
  • New York has been sparring with Airbnb for years over rules that prohibit rentals in most apartments for fewer than 30 days without a tenant present.
    Natalie Lung, Fortune, 2 Sep. 2023
  • The justices also sparred over the court’s practice of accepting emergency applications and ruling on them rapidly.
    Ian Max Stevenson, Idaho Statesman, 16 Apr. 2024
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spar

2 of 2 noun
  • Because of a mistake in the design, the spar had buckled.
    Helen Fields, Discover Magazine, 20 May 2014
  • The uniformed kid and the fancy FBI agent spar and bond; maybe the local cops aren’t so dumb after all.
    Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 27 Oct. 2022
  • Its masts point skyward, with rigging and ropes tied to spars and lying on deck.
    John Flesher, Fortune, 1 Mar. 2023
  • The teal magnesium frame curls, kinks and plunges from the central spar, and the wing-like seatpost/battery give the look some heft.
    Bill Roberson, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2022
  • In the flavor melee, sweet and savory align rather than spar; the balance allows the spices to come forward and throw off sparks.
    Bill Addison, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2021
  • Pretty logically, thank goodness: the Drive-mode button sits on the top left of the spar, with an EV button on the right.
    WIRED, 29 Mar. 2023
  • The strength of the film isn’t just the sheer force of her Streepness bulldozing everything in its path, but in watching her spar with Wiest and Bergen, all at the top of their game.
    Anne Cohen, refinery29.com, 14 Dec. 2020
  • Watch her spar with Arnold in a shouting match that feels improvised and so deeply emotional.
    Terry Byrne, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Dec. 2022
  • Most of them are watching the ring, where Jada is throwing her weight at the taller, lankier Jahnyah Lumpkin as the two young boxers spar.
    Rebecca Lurye, courant.com, 19 July 2021
  • The two spar; Lee knocks Cliff off his feet first, then Cliff tosses Lee into a prop automobile, leaving a dent.
    Danny Chau, The Atlantic, 22 June 2020
  • Before the jury comes in, lawyers for each side spar over what evidence can be presented and what questions can be asked.
    New York Times, 11 Oct. 2021
  • This is the latest spar between the governor and Phoenix's mayor during the pandemic.
    Nicole Sadek, The Arizona Republic, 2 Apr. 2021
  • Schlapp wrote the article after appearing on Keilar's show on Tuesday, where the two engaged in an intense spar over the issue of voter fraud.
    Haley Victory Smith, Washington Examiner, 6 Aug. 2020
  • This spar between estranged siblings is one of many dynamic and beautifully choreographed fight scenes in the film.
    Roslyn Talusan, refinery29.com, 14 Sep. 2021
  • Ironton rests hundreds of feet below the surface with its three masts standing and rigging attached to the spars, and is magnificently preserved by the cold freshwater of Lake Huron.
    Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 6 Mar. 2023
  • Standing next to the injection site, Snæbjörnsdóttir grabbed a piece of crystallized calcium carbonate, known here as the Icelandic spar, and held it against the sunlight.
    Ivana Kottasová, CNN, 20 Oct. 2021
  • To construct the wing spar and some other parts, Décision’s builders layered sheets of carbon fiber around a honeycomb of cardboard, giving the pieces both strength and flexibility.
    Helen Fields, Discover Magazine, 20 May 2014
  • Akhtar’s skill at dialogue is on full display here, as the two spar over the 2016 campaign until Akhtar throws up his hands at his father’s infuriatingly circular logic.
    Elizabeth Toohey, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Oct. 2020
  • The stability and extremely friendly nature of the model’s twin-spar aluminum chassis and Showa suspension belie the sheer violence my right wrist is imparting to the rear Bridgestone slick tire.
    Peter Jackson, Robb Report, 15 June 2021
  • Although others—younger, leaner, looser—spar and swarm, Belarmino, embodying the loneliness of the long-term boxer, punches the heavy bag with a fierce and solitary determination.
    Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2020
  • Or, if not seriously considering making operational changes, at least anticipating the pain that a geopolitical spar with China could inflict.
    Ethan Karp, Forbes, 3 May 2023
  • Because of a mistake in the design, the spar had buckled.
    Helen Fields, Discover Magazine, 20 May 2014
  • The uniformed kid and the fancy FBI agent spar and bond; maybe the local cops aren’t so dumb after all.
    Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 27 Oct. 2022
  • Its masts point skyward, with rigging and ropes tied to spars and lying on deck.
    John Flesher, Fortune, 1 Mar. 2023
  • The teal magnesium frame curls, kinks and plunges from the central spar, and the wing-like seatpost/battery give the look some heft.
    Bill Roberson, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2022
  • In the flavor melee, sweet and savory align rather than spar; the balance allows the spices to come forward and throw off sparks.
    Bill Addison, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2021
  • Pretty logically, thank goodness: the Drive-mode button sits on the top left of the spar, with an EV button on the right.
    WIRED, 29 Mar. 2023
  • The strength of the film isn’t just the sheer force of her Streepness bulldozing everything in its path, but in watching her spar with Wiest and Bergen, all at the top of their game.
    Anne Cohen, refinery29.com, 14 Dec. 2020
  • Watch her spar with Arnold in a shouting match that feels improvised and so deeply emotional.
    Terry Byrne, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Dec. 2022
  • Most of them are watching the ring, where Jada is throwing her weight at the taller, lankier Jahnyah Lumpkin as the two young boxers spar.
    Rebecca Lurye, courant.com, 19 July 2021

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spar.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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