confront

confront

English

Etymology

From Middle French confronter, from Old French confronter, from Medieval Latin confrontāre, from con- + frons (“forehead”, “front”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kənˈfɹʌnt/

• Audio (US)

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  • Rhymes: -ʌnt
• (obsolete) IPA^(key): /kɒnˈfɹɒnt/ [1]
• Hyphenation: con‧front

Verb

confront (third-person singular simple present confronts, present participle confronting, simple past and past participle confronted)

1. (transitive) To stand or meet facing, especially in competition, hostility or defiance; to come face to face with

   It is important that police officers learn to deescalate situations in which someone confronts them aggressively.

   Synonyms: oppose, challenge

2. (transitive) To deal with.

   confront a problem

3. (transitive) To bring someone face to face with something.

   We should confront him about the missing money.

4. (transitive) To come up against; to encounter.

   Inter Milan are to confront Juventus in the final.

5. (intransitive) To engage in confrontation.
6. (transitive) To set a thing side by side with; to compare.
7. (transitive) To put a thing facing to; to set in contrast to.

Derived terms

Derived terms

• confront one's demons
• confrontable
• confrontation
• confrontational
• confronter
• confrontment

Related terms

• confronté (heraldry)

Translations

to stand or meet facing, especially in competition, hostility or defiance

Afrikaans: konfronteer Albanian: ballafaqoj (sq) Bikol Central: atubang Bulgarian: противостоя (bg) (protivostoja), изправям се пред (izpravjam se pred) Dutch: confronteren (nl) Esperanto: konfronti, alfronti Finnish: kohdata (fi) French: confronter (fr) German: konfrontieren (de), entgegentreten (de) Hebrew: הִתְעַמֵּת‎ (he) (hit'amét) Ido: konfrontar (io) Italian: affrontare (it) Lü: ᦎᦹᧅ (ṫuek) Maori: whakapātari, tuma Occitan: afrontar Portuguese: confrontar (pt), enfrentar (pt) Russian: противостоя́ть (ru) impf (protivostojátʹ) Spanish: enfrentar (es) Thai: เผชิญหน้า (th) (pà-chəən-nâa), สู้หน้า (th) Turkish: yüzleşmek (tr) (cope with), göğüs germek (tr) (idiomatic , withstand)

to deal with

Albanian: ballafaqoj (sq) Bulgarian: имам работа с (imam rabota s) Dutch: confronteren (nl) Esperanto: alfronti Finnish: kohdata (fi) German: sich einer Sache (de) f stellen (de), sich mit etwas auseinandersetzen, sich mit einem Problem befassen Italian: affrontare (it) Russian: име́ть де́ло (с) impf (imétʹ délo (s)) Spanish: enfrentar (es) Swedish: konfrontera (sv)

to bring someone face to face with something

Albanian: ballafaqoj (sq) Dutch: confronteren (nl) Finnish: kohdata (fi) German: konfrontieren (de) Italian: confrontarsi Spanish: enfrentar (es) Turkish: yüzleştirmek (tr)

to come up against; to encounter

Albanian: kundërvihem (sq) (i) Bulgarian: стоя срещу (stoja sreštu) Dutch: confronteren (nl) Finnish: kohdata (fi) German: konfrontieren (de), begegnen (de) Italian: sfidare (it) Russian: ста́лкиваться (ru) impf (stálkivatʹsja), столкну́ться (ru) pf (stolknútʹsja) Spanish: enfrentar (es) Turkish: karşı koymak (tr)

to engage in confrontation

Albanian: përballoj (sq) Dutch: confronteren (nl), German: konfrontieren (de), gegenübertreten (de) Hebrew: התעמת‎ (he) (hit'amét) Maori: whakatumatuma Spanish: enfrentar (es) Swedish: konfrontera (sv)

to set a thing side by side with; to compare

Albanian: ballafaqoj (sq) Bulgarian: съпоставям (bg) (sǎpostavjam) Dutch: tegenover stellen, vergelijken (nl) German: gegenüberstellen (de), nebeneinanderhalten Italian: confrontare (it)

to put a thing facing to; to set in contrast to

Albanian: ballafaqoj (sq) Bulgarian: съпоставям (bg) (sǎpostavjam) Dutch: tegenover stellen German: einander gegenüberstellen Russian: сопоставля́ть (ru) impf (sopostavljátʹ), сопоста́вить (ru) pf (sopostávitʹ), противопоставля́ть (ru) impf (protivopostavljátʹ), противопоста́вить (ru) pf (protivopostávitʹ)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

French: (please verify) confronter (fr) Spanish: (please verify) enfrentar (es)

References

1. “Confront” in John Walker, A Critical Pronouncing Dictionary […] , London: Sold by G. G. J. and J. Robinſon, Paternoſter Row; and T. Cadell, in the Strand, 1791, →OCLC, page 159.