clash
Americanverb (used without object)
-
to make a loud, harsh noise.
The gears of the old car clashed and grated.
-
to come together or collide, especially noisily.
The cymbals clashed.
-
to conflict; disagree.
Their stories of the accident clashed completely.
-
(of juxtaposed colors) to be offensive to the eye.
-
to engage in a physical conflict or contest, as in a game or a battle (often followed bywith ).
The Yankees clash with the White Sox for the final game of the season.
verb (used with object)
-
to strike with a resounding or violent collision.
He clashed his fist against the heavy door.
-
to produce (sound) by or as by collision.
The tower bell clashed its mournful note.
noun
-
a loud, harsh noise, as of a collision.
The automobiles collided with a terrible clash.
-
a collision, especially a noisy one.
-
a conflict; opposition, especially of views or interests.
a clash between nations.
- Synonyms:
- dispute, altercation, disagreement
- Antonyms:
- cooperation, agreement
-
a battle, fight, or skirmish.
The clash between the border patrols left three men dead.
verb
-
to make or cause to make a loud harsh sound, esp by striking together
-
(intr) to be incompatible; conflict
-
(intr) to engage together in conflict or contest
-
(intr) (of dates or events) to coincide
-
(intr) (of colours) to look ugly or inharmonious together
noun
-
a loud harsh noise
-
a collision or conflict
-
gossip; tattle
Usage
What are other ways to say clash? A clash is a conflict; this word is also used in reference to opposition, especially of views or interests. How does clash compare to brush and struggle? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
clashsimple
-
clashessimple
-
have clashedperfect
-
has clashedperfect
-
am clashingprogressive
-
are clashingprogressive
-
is clashingprogressive
-
have been clashingperfect progressive
-
has been clashingperfect progressive
Past
-
clashedsimple
-
had clashedperfect
-
was clashingprogressive
-
were clashingprogressive
-
had been clashingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of clash
Explanation
When two things clash, they run violently into each other, often with an accompanying loud noise. The percussionist in an orchestra has the enviable job of making two cymbals clash together. Kids clash when they run into each other on the playground, but they can also clash through a strong disagreement: "My cousins always clash when it comes to deciding what movie to watch after dinner." Also, your shirt might clash with your pants, if the colors or prints simply don't go together. Clash is imitative — it sounds like its original meaning, "make a loud, sharp sound," and may be related to the words clap and crash.
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.
See Examples For:
“As long as we win the World Cup,” Yamal said ahead of his clash with France, “I think no one here will complain about me not scoring goals.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
A couple who are getting married on Saturday say they are leaning into the wedding's World Cup clash by screening England's quarter-final match against Norway next to the dancefloor.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
Wolverine’s clash with Magneto, the perennial antihero, left him severely injured, physically and mentally.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
Schwab resigned as chair last year after a public clash with the board for opening a probe into a whistleblower’s allegations of misconduct.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
In this, 14 and 17, the vanishing point, incomprehensible in Aristotelian terms, is mysteriously obscured, showing how sensitive artists were to the clash between mathematics and philosophy.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
Shares are down 65% over a year following clashes with big investors around Florence’s purchase of Homes.com.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026
The renewed clashes between the U.S. and Iran also rippled through precious metals.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
Investors have a way of looking past geopolitical storms, as the seesaw performance on Wednesday shows following the latest U.S.-Iran clashes.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 9, 2026
One of the affected provinces is South Kivu, which has seen clashes between the Congolese armed forces and the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group.
From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026
Nor had there been any clashes with Ras the Exhorter—although in the past week he had been increasingly active.
From "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison
Along the Pacific coast, such values clashed with those of the merchants and seafarers who had relocated from the American northeast.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
Though he had made six All-Star teams and also starred with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Baltimore Orioles, Bonilla played poorly and clashed with the front office, setting the table for the deferred payments and BBD.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
Protesters have clashed with both DHS contractors and officers periodically over the past month.
From Salon ● Jun. 29, 2026
Rather, “our Constitution is color-blind,” and this kind of “special treatment” for Carter clashed with the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of equal protection.
From Slate ● Jun. 22, 2026
He jammed it onto his head, where it clashed horribly with his hair.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
The BBC is moving the date of a music festival set to take place in Stirling in order to avoid clashing with local events.
From BBC ● Apr. 29, 2026
Behind the scenes, however, Musk and Altman were clashing over a proposed shift of OpenAI to a for-profit business that could attract investors in the capital-intensive AI race.
From Barron's ● Apr. 24, 2026
Frustration is simmering among parents who say their young children are spending too much classroom time online, disrupting their learning and development at a critical time and clashing with stricter screen restrictions at home.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2026
It is a marriage that never worked for his counterpart at the Justice Department, former Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater, who recently quit after clashing with superiors who take a more lenient view on enforcement.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 8, 2026
The crying and clashing of the harmonies were an obsession in the melted bowels.
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
