Adjacent Words

Battle definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

BAT'TLE, n. [See Beat.] Owen supposes the Welsh batel, to be from tel, tight, stretched, compact, and the word primarily to have expressed the drawing of the bow. This is probably an error. The first battles of men were with clubs, or some weapons used in beating, striking. Hence the club of Hercules. And although the moderns use different weapons, still a battle is some mode of beating or striking.]
1. A fight, or encounter between enemies, or opposing armies; an engagement. It is usually applied to armies or large bodies of men; but in popular language, the word is applied to an encounter between small bodies, between individuals, or inferior animals. It is also more generally applied to the encounters of land forces than of ships; the encounters of the latter being called engagements. But battle is applicable to any combat of enemies.
2. A body of forces, or division of an army.
The main body, as distinct from the van and rear.
To give battle, is to attack an enemy; to join battle, is properly to meet the attack; but perhaps this distinction is not always observed.
A pitched battle is one in which the armies are previously drawn up in form, with a regular disposition of the forces.
To turn the battle to the gate, is to fight valiantly, and drive the enemy, who hath entered the city, back to the gate. Isaiah 28.
BAT'TLE, v.i. To join in battle; to contend in fight; sometimes with it; as, to battle it.
BAT'TLE, v.t. To cover with armed force.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a hostile meeting of opposing military forces in the course of a war; "Grant won a decisive victory in the battle of Chickamauga"; "he lost his romantic ideas about war when he got into a real engagement" [syn: battle, conflict, fight, engagement]
2: an energetic attempt to achieve something; "getting through the crowd was a real struggle"; "he fought a battle for recognition" [syn: struggle, battle]
3: an open clash between two opposing groups (or individuals); "the harder the conflict the more glorious the triumph"-- Thomas Paine; "police tried to control the battle between the pro- and anti-abortion mobs" [syn: conflict, struggle, battle] v
1: battle or contend against in or as if in a battle; "The Kurds are combating Iraqi troops in Northern Iraq"; "We must combat the prejudices against other races"; "they battled over the budget" [syn: battle, combat]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Usage: often attributive Etymology: Middle English batel, from Anglo-French bataille battle, battalion, from Late Latin battalia combat, alteration of battualia fencing exercises, from Latin battuere to beat Date: 13th century 1. archaic battalion 2. a combat between two persons 3. a general encounter between armies, ships of war, or aircraft 4. an extended contest, struggle, or controversy <a battle of wits> II. verb (battled; battling) Date: 14th century intransitive verb 1. to engage in battle ; fight 2. to contend with full strength, vigor, skill, or resources ; struggle transitive verb 1. to fight or struggle against 2. to force (as one's way) by battling • battler noun III. transitive verb (battled; battling) Etymology: Middle English batailen, from Anglo-French bataillier to fortify with battlements, from Old French batailles battlemented tower, probably from plural of bataille battle Date: 14th century archaic to fortify with battlements

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 a prolonged fight between large organized armed forces. 2 a contest; a prolonged or difficult struggle (life is a constant battle; a battle of wits). --v. 1 intr. struggle; fight persistently (battled against the elements; battled for women's rights). 2 tr. fight (one's way etc.). 3 tr. US engage in battle with. Phrases and idioms: battle-cruiser hist. a heavy-gunned ship faster and more lightly armoured than a battleship. battle-cry a cry or slogan of participants in a battle or contest. battle fatigue = combat fatigue. battle royal 1 a battle in which several combatants or all available forces engage; a free fight. 2 a heated argument. half the battle the key to the success of an undertaking. Derivatives: battler n. Etymology: ME f. OF bataille ult. f. LL battualia gladiatorial exercises f. L battuere beat

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Drawn Drawn, p. p. & a. See Draw, v. t. & i. Drawn butter, butter melter and prepared to be used as a sort of gravy. Drawn fowl, an eviscerated fowl. Drawn game or battle, one in which neither party wins; one equally contested. Drawn fox, one driven from cover. --Shak. Drawn work, ornamental work made by drawing out threads from fine cloth, and uniting the cross threads, to form a pattern.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Battle Bat"tle, a. Fertile. See Battel, a. [Obs.]

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Battle Bat"tle, n. [OE. bataille, bataile, F. bataille battle, OF., battle, battalion, fr. L. battalia, battualia, the fighting and fencing exercises of soldiers and gladiators, fr. batuere to strike, beat. Cf. Battalia, 1st Battel, and see Batter, v. t. ] 1. A general action, fight, or encounter, in which all the divisions of an army are or may be engaged; an engagement; a combat. 2. A struggle; a contest; as, the battle of life. The whole intellectual battle that had at its center the best poem of the best poet of that day. --H. Morley. 3. A division of an army; a battalion. [Obs.] The king divided his army into three battles. --Bacon. The cavalry, by way of distinction, was called the battle, and on it alone depended the fate of every action. --Robertson. 4. The main body, as distinct from the van and rear; battalia. [Obs.] --Hayward. Note: Battle is used adjectively or as the first part of a self-explaining compound; as, battle brand, a ``brand'' or sword used in battle; battle cry; battlefield; battle ground; battlearray; battle song. Battle piece, a painting, or a musical composition, representing a battle. Battle royal. (a) A fight between several gamecocks, where the one that stands longest is the victor. --Grose. (b) A contest with fists or cudgels in which more than two are engaged; a m[^e]l['e]e. --Thackeray. Drawn battle, one in which neither party gains the victory. To give battle, to attack an enemy. To join battle, to meet the attack; to engage in battle. Pitched battle, one in which the armies are previously drawn up in form, with a regular disposition of the forces. Wager of battle. See under Wager, n. Syn: Conflict; encounter; contest; action. Usage: Battle, Combat, Fight, Engagement. These words agree in denoting a close encounter between contending parties. Fight is a word of less dignity than the others. Except in poetry, it is more naturally applied to the encounter of a few individuals, and more commonly an accidental one; as, a street fight. A combat is a close encounter, whether between few or many, and is usually premeditated. A battle is commonly more general and prolonged. An engagement supposes large numbers on each side, engaged or intermingled in the conflict.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Battle Bat"tle (b[a^]t"t'l), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Battled (-tl'd); p. pr. & vb. n. Battling.] [F. batailler, fr. bataille. See Battle, n.] To join in battle; to contend in fight; as, to battle over theories. To meet in arms, and battle in the plain. --Prior.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Battle Bat"tle, v. t. To assail in battle; to fight.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(battles, battling, battled) Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English. 1. A battle is a violent fight between groups of people, especially one between military forces during a war. ...the victory of King William III at the Battle of the Boyne. ...after a gun battle between police and drug traffickers. ...men who die in battle. N-VAR 2. A battle is a conflict in which different people or groups compete in order to achieve success or control. ...a renewed political battle over Britain's attitude to Europe. ...the eternal battle between good and evil in the world. ...a macho battle for supremacy... = struggle N-COUNT: usu with supp, oft N prep 3. You can use battle to refer to someone's efforts to achieve something in spite of very difficult circumstances. ...the battle against crime... She has fought a constant battle with her weight... Greg lost his brave battle against cancer two years ago. = fight N-COUNT: usu sing, oft N against n 4. To battle with an opposing group means to take part in a fight or contest against them. In American English, you can also say that one group or person is battling another. Thousands of people battled with police and several were reportedly wounded... The sides must battle again for a quarter-final place on December 16... They're also battling the government to win compensation. V-RECIP: V with/against n, pl-n V, V n, also pl-n V to-inf 5. To battle means to try hard to do something in spite of very difficult circumstances. In British English, you battle against something or with something. In American English, you battle something. Doctors battled throughout the night to save her life. ...a lone yachtsman returning from his months of battling with the elements... In Wyoming, firefighters are still battling the two blazes. = fight VERB: V to-inf, V with/against/through n, V n • battler (battlers) If anyone can do it, he can. He's a battler and has a strong character. N-COUNT 6. see also pitched battle, running battle 7. If one person or group does battle with another, they take part in a battle or contest against them. You can also say that two people or groups do battle. ...the notorious Montonero guerrilla group who did battle with the army during the dirty war... PHRASE: V inflects, PHR with/against n, pl-n PHR 8. If you say that something is half the battle, you mean that it is the most important step towards achieving something. Choosing the right type of paint for the job is half the battle. PHRASE: usu v-link PHR 9. If you are fighting a losing battle, you are trying to achieve something but are not going to be successful. The crew fought a losing battle to try to restart the engines. ...on a day when the sun is fighting a losing battle against the lowering clouds. PHRASE: V inflects, oft PHR with/against n, PHR to-inf 10. If one group or person battles it out with another, they take part in a fight or contest against each other until one of them wins or a definite result is reached. You can also say that two groups or two people battle it out. In the Cup Final, Leeds battled it out with the old enemy, Manchester United... PHRASE: V inflects, PHR with n, pl-n PHR 11. If you say that someone has lost the battle, but won the war, you mean that although they have been defeated in a small conflict they have won a larger, more important one of which it was a part. If you say that someone has won the battle but lost the war, you mean that they have won the small conflict but lost the larger one. The strikers may have won the battle, but they lost the war. PHRASE: Vs and battle inflect

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

See WAR.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. n. Combat, engagement, action, conflict, contest, fight, rencontre, collision, affair. II. v. n. Contend, struggle, strive, do battle, fight, contest, desperately endeavor. [Usually with for.]

Moby Thesaurus

Actium, Adrianople, Aegates Isles, Aegospotami, Agincourt, Antietam, Anzio, Arbela-Gaugamela, Ardennes, Austerlitz, Ayacucho, Balaclava, Bannockburn, Bataan-Corregidor, Bismarck Sea, Blenheim, Bosworth Field, Bouvines, Boyne, Brunanburh, Bunker Hill, Cannae, Caporetto, Chancellorsville, Crecy, Dunkirk, El Alamein, Flodden, Fontenoy, Fredericksburg, Gaza, Gettysburg, Granicus River, Guadalcanal, Hampton Roads, Hastings, Hohenlinden, Inchon, Long Island, Marathon, Midway, Poitiers, Sedan, Singapore, Solferino, Waterloo, action, aerial combat, affray, agonize, all-out war, altercation, antagonize, appeal to arms, argument, arm, armed combat, armed conflict, armor, armor-plate, armored combat, assail, assault, attack, bank, barricade, battle royal, beat against, beat up against, belligerence, belligerency, blockade, bloodshed, bombard, box, brawl, breast the wave, broil, brush, buck, buffet, buffet the waves, bullfight, bulwark, campaign, carry on hostilities, castellate, clash, clash of arms, close, close with, cockfight, collide, combat, come to blows, compete with, competition, conflict, contend, contend against, contest, crenellate, crusade, cut and thrust, dig in, dispute, dogfight, duel, embattle, embroilment, encounter, engage in hostilities, engagement, entrench, exchange blows, exchange of blows, fence, feud, fight, fight a duel, fight against, fighting, fire fight, fortify, fracas, fray, garrison, give and take, give satisfaction, grapple, grapple with, ground combat, grunt and sweat, hand-to-hand combat, hand-to-hand fight, hassle, hostilities, hot war, house-to-house combat, huff and puff, join battle with, jostle, joust, la guerre, labor against, make war, man, man the garrison, melee, might of arms, military operations, militate against, mine, mix it up, naval combat, offer resistance, onset, onslaught, open hostilities, open war, oppugn, palisade, passage of arms, pitched battle, quarrel, rassle, reluct, reluctate, resort to arms, riot, rival, rumble, run a tilt, running fight, scramble, scrimmage, scuffle, shed blood, shooting war, shoving match, skirmish, sortie, spar, spill blood, stand-up fight, state of war, stem the tide, street fight, strive, strive against, struggle, struggle against, take on, tauromachy, the sword, thrust and parry, tilt, total war, tourney, tug, tug-of-war, tussle, vie with, wage war, wall, war, warfare, warmaking, warring, wartime, wrestle