CHALLENGED Synonyms: 73 Similar and Opposite Words

challenged

verb

Definition of challenged

past tense of challenge

as in questioned

to demand proof of the truth or rightness of don't hesitate to challenge any statement that generalizes about people

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in dared

to invite (someone) to take part in a contest or to perform a feat I challenge you to swim to the other side of the pond

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in required

to have as a requirement having to put up with an overbearing boss challenges forbearance

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of challenged The Arkansas ban is being held up in court after CVS challenged the constitutionality of the law. — Blake Farmer, NPR, 5 Oct. 2026 The legality of these warrants are being challenged by Mountbatten-Windsor’s lawyers via judicial review, The Telegraph reported. — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 5 Oct. 2026 The Chiefs challenged punter Matt Araiza to improve his ball placement in the offseason; he's long been known for his booming leg, but the Chiefs wanted to see more punts inside the 20. — ABC News, 5 Oct. 2026 The Padres unsuccessfully challenged that France’s drive was a foul ball. — Steve Megargee, Chicago Tribune, 4 Oct. 2026 Still, a federal wealth tax would immediately be challenged in the courts. — Nicholas Lemann, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2026 The department has under 300 firefighters and Bolen said the department’s staffing needs have been challenged to meet that growth. — Harllie Stevenson, Idaho Statesman, 3 Oct. 2026 He was currently involved in a feud with Andrade El Idolo and challenged him for the national championship Saturday in Chicago, with El Idolo winning to retain the title. — Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2026 Petruzzi also challenged allegations that Handal supplied weapons and equipment. — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 28 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for challenged

Verb

The deal is a way to repair relationships between the agency and west Charlotte residents who have questioned NCDOT’s communication and transparency on the multi-billion dollar toll lane project.

— Desiree Mathurin, Charlotte Observer, 1 Oct. 2026
Prosecutors questioned the schizophrenia diagnosis and pointed out that suffering from mental illness is not the same as meeting the legal standard of insanity.

— Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of questioned

Verb

To get her father and his siblings to offer answers to questions no one had ever dared ask in the past until Duong’s cameras rolled, an inventive hybrid documentary-narrative model was hatched for the film.

— Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 4 Oct. 2026
In Cuba, for instance, the single format is dominant, and very few artists have dared to create a true concept album.

— Jessica Roiz, Billboard, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of dared

Verb

There’s not a lot of action, but heavy action is not required.

— Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 2 Oct. 2026
During a recent voice receptionist deployment across numerous dental practices in the same group, each location required different call routing, ring times, after-hours escalation and training.

— Manjot Pal, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of required

Verb

Another 10 seats were due to be contested in October 2019, along with all the 119 seats in the Chamber of Deputies.

— Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 1 Oct. 2026
Others have created a multimodal version of it using text, images, quotations, citations, audio, video, or other media to show how the idea is inherited, transformed, contested, and reimagined.

— Saurabh Anand, JSTOR Daily, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of contested

Verb

Sure, the Raiders only needed to travel 50 yards after stopping the Chiefs on fourth down at midfield.

— Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 4 Oct. 2026
Better crystals reveal the signal The researchers first needed cleaner UTe₂ crystals because PDWs are extremely delicate and impurities can obscure their signatures.

— Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 4 Oct. 2026

Definition of needed

Verb

However, Sullivan disputed the idea that the presence of mental illness prevents criminal responsibility.

— Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 1 Oct. 2026
Avila’s lawyer, Nancy Doumanian, previously disputed the judge’s tentative finding that there was insufficient evidence Avila had suffered permanent nerve damage.

— Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of disputed

Verb

Nearly 1,000 runners took this option, and the race charted 652 incidents of injury or illness.

— Vibhu Krishna, STAT, 2 Oct. 2026
The plane descended sharply, losing half its altitude in less than two minutes, before other crew members took control of the Boeing 737 Max and made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.

— Victoria Craw, Washington Post, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of took

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challenge

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“Challenged.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/challenged. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of challenged

verb

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