Competent
Competent adjective - Having the required skills for an acceptable level of performance.
Upper hand and competent are semantically related. In some cases you can use "Upper hand" instead an adjective "Competent".
Upper hand
Upper hand noun - The more favorable condition or position in a competition.
Competent and upper hand are semantically related. Sometimes you can use "Competent" instead an adjective phrase "Upper hand".
Mutual synonyms
Both terms in one sentence
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Despite his naivety, he has proven competent in battle when he almost got the upper hand over Barricade in the third episode and when he helped fight Starscream and ended up overcoming Waspinator, which also makes him somewhat of a Cute Bruiser.
Source: Kid-Appeal Character -
If malicious this character is a Dirty Coward who may not look the part when he believes he has the upper hand, but will become a blubbering mess whenever he has to deal with his superiors or a competent opponent.
Source: Nervous Wreck
Cite this Source
Upper hand and Competent. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 31, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/competent/upper_hand
Competent & Upper hand. N.p., 2016. Web. 31 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/competent/upper_hand>.
Upper hand or Competent. 2016. Accessed July 31, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/competent/upper_hand.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "competent" and "upper hand" have occurred on timeline