face-off
Americannoun
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face-offs
plural
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the act of facing the puck, as at the start of a game or period.
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an open confrontation.
noun
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ice hockey the method of starting a game, in which the referee drops the puck, etc between two opposing players
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a confrontation
verb
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of face-off
First recorded in 1895–1900; noun use of verb phrase face off
Explanation
A face-off is an in-person confrontation, like the face-off between rival ice hockey players or a face-off between presidential candidates on a debate stage. You can use the noun face-off whenever two people have a face-to-face showdown. You could even describe the duel between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr as a face-off (a deadly one, as it turned out). Rival groups or teams confronting each other is also a face-off, like the big championship face-off at the end of basketball season. This sports context is the way the word was originally used, dating from at least 1886.
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:
The Indian journalist Varghese George describes the BJP’s confrontation with the cockroach protesters as a face-off between India’s older “WhatsApp generation” and the “Instagram generation.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
The two candidates topped a crowded field of gubernatorial hopefuls in the June 2 primary, earning them the opportunity to face-off in the general election.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2026
The obligatory face-off at the end lasted less than a minute and a half, and only ended when Hearn stepped between the fighters, before the heavyweights exchanged a respectful handshake.
From BBC ● May 21, 2026
Dubois declined a fist bump in their first face-off in February and the hostility continued when they met again this week, with the verbal exchanges beginning within minutes.
From BBC ● May 7, 2026
One day in May the army announced that it had sent paratroopers into Mingora in preparation for a face-off with the Taliban there.
From "Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Changed the World" by Malala Yousafzai
Game and player data can also be used to create content like fantasy league face-offs that will keep fans coming back even in the off seasons, when there are no big games.
From Barron's ● Feb. 18, 2026
While the stakes in these kind of running-mate face-offs are typically low – an undercard to the presidential main event - this one might be different.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2024
That’s one reason debate coaches review these face-offs with the sound muted—because what is said is often less important than how a candidate behaves.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2024
The fights are copious, and in another new twist for “Star Wars,” many of them take the form of balletic martial arts face-offs.
From New York Times ● Jun. 4, 2024
There are plenty of slo-mo martial arts face-offs and mind-blowing manipulations of the elements.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 21, 2024
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.
