Meaning & use
clash
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Meanings
verbintransitive
To fight or disagree strongly, either in a physical struggle or in an argument.
Grammar: Needs no object; often followed by with or over: clash with the police, clash over money.
Patterns
- clash with someone
- clash over something
- someone and someone clash
Protesters clashed with police outside the stadium.
The two leaders clashed over how to spend the budget.
My brother and I clash whenever we play board games.
verbintransitiveBritish
To happen at the same time as another event, so that you cannot attend both.
Grammar: Often used with with: the meeting clashes with my dentist appointment.
Patterns
- something clashes with something
The concert clashes with my sister's graduation.
I would love to come, but your party clashes with my class.
Our match clashed with the final, so we moved it.
verbintransitive
To look unpleasant or odd together because colors or styles do not suit each other.
Grammar: Often followed by with: the red sofa clashes with the orange wall.
Patterns
- something clashes with something
The purple tie clashes with his green shirt.
Those curtains clash with the carpet.
The modern extension clashes with the old stone house.
verbtransitive or intransitive
To strike together with a loud, harsh ringing noise, as metal objects do.
Grammar: Works both ways: the cymbals clashed; he clashed the cymbals.
Patterns
- something clashes
- clash something together
The cymbals clashed at the end of the piece.
Swords clashed in the arena.
She clashed the pot lids together to scare the birds.
nouncountable
A fight or sharp disagreement between people or groups, or a loud ringing sound of metal.
Grammar: Often followed by between or with: a clash between rivals.
Patterns
- a clash between someone and someone
- a clash with someone
A clash between rival fans led to several arrests.
Their clash of personalities made teamwork hard.
We heard the clash of cymbals from the band room.
Word forms
| third person singular | clashes |
|---|---|
| past tense | clashed |
| past participle | clashed |
| -ing form | clashing |
Common combinations
- clash with the police
- Protesters clashed with the police near the square.
- clash over money
- The couple often clash over money.
- clash of personalities
- The split was due to a clash of personalities.
- clashing colors
- The room was full of clashing colors.
- clash of cymbals
- A clash of cymbals startled the audience.
- clash of cultures
- The film explores a clash of cultures in a small town.
Synonyms and how they differ
- conflict
- Conflict is the broader, more formal word for any serious disagreement, while clash suggests a more sudden and direct meeting.
- collide
- Collide mainly describes a physical crash, whereas clash can be about arguments, schedules or colors too.
- disagree
- Disagree is mild and polite, whereas clash implies a heated dispute.
- jar
- Jar describes something that sounds or looks unpleasant next to something else, but it is softer than clash.
Opposites
Word family
- clashing adjective
- conflicting or not going well together
- clashingly adverb
- in a way that conflicts or looks mismatched
Commonly confused: clash or crash? clash or clasp?
clash vs crash
Crash means to hit with a loud noise and damage, as in a car crash, whereas clash stresses conflict or an unpleasant mismatch.
clash vs clasp
Clasp means to hold tightly or fasten, and does not imply conflict.
Practice
Which sentence uses clash to talk about a timetable problem?
Choose one answer.
Here clash means two events happen at the same time. The other sentences use it for a dispute, a color mismatch, and a metallic noise.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “clash”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.