Synonyms for affray

26 synonyms
2 meanings

noun

Most common

brawl altercation scuffle fracas alarm terror fright

Synonyms by meaning

Noun

1. Brawl

brawl, fracas, altercation, fight, scuffle, quarrel, riot, conflict, feud, tussle, uproar, tumult, struggle, rumpus, row, scrimmage, broil, ruction, strife, squabble

2. Fray

fray, disturbance, ruffle

Other

fright, terror, alarm

Definitions

n. 1
The act of suddenly disturbing anyone; an assault or attack.
A 22-year-old man was also arrested in connection with the incident for affray towards attending paramedics.
n. 2
A tumultuous assault or quarrel.

Forms

Plural: affrays → brawls, fracases, altercations, fights…

Choose the right word

Affray, Brawl, Broil or Quarrel?

Affray, brawl, and broil, like quarrel, are words of inferior dignity. An affray or broil may arise at a street corner; the affray always involves physical force; the brawl or broil may be confined to violent language.

J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)

Example sentences

brawl Sami and Farid had a brawl right before Christmas.
altercation An altercation broke out between Dan and Linda.
scuffle Miroslav and Rima had a little scuffle over that.
alarm My alarm clock didn't work. That's why I was late.
terror The frightened boy's heart palpitated with terror.

Popularity over time

Word	1850 → 2019	Trend
affray		falling
brawl		rising
altercation		rising
scuffle		rising
fracas		rising
alarm		rising

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

By length

3 letters: row¹
4 letters: riot², feud¹, fray¹
5 letters: fight¹, alarm², brawl¹, broil¹
6 letters: terror², strife¹, fright¹, uproar², ruffle², tumult², tussle², fracas², rumpus
7 letters: quarrel², scuffle², ruction
8 letters: conflict², struggle², squabble²
9 letters: scrimmage²
11 letters: disturbance³, altercation⁴

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (riot² = 2 syllables).