battle
noun
a hostile encounter or engagement between opposing military forces.
battle
1 American
[bat-l]
/ ˈbæt l /
noun
-
battles
plural
-
a hostile encounter or engagement between opposing military forces.
the battle of Waterloo.
-
participation in such hostile encounters or engagements.
wounds received in battle.
-
a fight between two persons or animals.
ordering a trial by battle to settle the dispute.
-
any conflict or struggle.
a battle for control of the Senate.
-
Archaic. a battalion.
verb (used without object)
battled,
battling
verb (used with object)
battled,
battling
-
to fight (a person, army, cause, etc.).
We battled strong winds and heavy rains in our small boat.
-
to force or accomplish by fighting, struggling, etc..
He battled his way to the top of his profession.
idioms
battle
2
American
[bat-l]
/ ˈbæt l /
verb (used with object)
Archaic.
battled,
battling
battle
1
British
/ ˈbætəl /
noun
-
a fight between large armed forces; military or naval engagement; combat
-
conflict; contention; struggle
his battle for recognition
-
to start fighting
verb
-
to fight in or as if in military combat; contend (with)
she battled against cancer
-
to struggle in order to achieve something or arrive somewhere
he battled through the crowd
-
(intr) to scrape a living, esp by doing odd jobs
Battle
2
British
/ ˈbætəl /
noun
Battle
3
British
/ ˈbætəl /
noun
battle
More Idioms
Synonym Usage
Battle, action, skirmish mean a conflict between organized armed forces. A battle is a prolonged and general conflict pursued to a definite decision: the Battle of the Bulge in World War II. A skirmish is a slight engagement, often on the periphery of an area of battle: several minor skirmishes. An action can be a battle or a skirmish or can refer to actual fighting or combat: a major military action; action along the border; He saw action in the campaign.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of battle1
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English batail(le), batal, from Old French bataille, from Vulgar Latin battālia (unrecorded) for Late Latin battuālia (neuter plural) “gladiatorial exercises,” equivalent to battu(ere) “to strike” + -ālia, neuter plural of -ālis adjective suffix; see also -al 2, bate 2
Origin of battle2
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English batailen, from Middle French bataillier “to provide with batailles; see battlement
Explanation
A battle is an open struggle, usually between two groups — like a baseball championship game or a food fight. The word battle is often used in opposition to war, a series of battles. Perhaps you have heard someone tell you, after winning the first of many dance competitions, "You may have won the battle, but you haven’t won the war!" A battle doesn’t have to occur between two individuals or groups. You may endure an inner battle to cut down on junk food. If you skip those fries for lunch today, then you have won a small battle.
Vocabulary lists containing battle
Superhero Lexicon
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Beowulf vocabulary
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"Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, Act V
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It’s time for the annual battle with rival Banning on Friday night.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
It truly took off in World War II, when the U.K. and Germany jammed and spoofed aerial navigation signals in what Winston Churchill dubbed the battle of the beams.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
Controlling the social setting is only half the battle.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
The coup bid and a corruption probe against Flavio Bolsonaro did little to sway voters fed up with crime, violence and the battle to make ends meet in Latin America's biggest economy.
From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026
Trying to chase the omen from his mind was not a battle he was winning, and it had not been the restful day he’d needed.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
The 1966 Battle of Hastings re-enactment that got real.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026
It tells, over 230 feet of finely embroidered cloth, the story of the last time England was conquered—the victory of William of Normandy at the Battle of Hastings in 1066.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
Services on the route go via Battle, Tunbridge Wells and Sevenoaks.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
Carol Breed, who backs the Detroit Lions, considered travelling to Highmark Stadium from her home in Battle Creek, Michigan, after she heard they would play the Canadian national anthem.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
Though the Germans fell on the Americans like a whirlwind, more American reinforcements soon arrived and launched a vicious counterattack known as the Battle of the Bulge.
From "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Some people will always want their superhero TV shows to feature battles and explosions every week.
From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026
The campaign is playing out against an unusually combustible mix of economic anxiety, war, immigration battles, corruption concerns and unease over rapidly expanding artificial intelligence.
From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026
Martha’s Vineyard, long known for attracting celebrities, has become the inevitable butt of memes as it battles the hostile arachnids.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2026
After years of legal battles and bitter fallout with the national press, repairing ties will be a challenge.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
Before awed spectators, the army fought pretend battles, with guns, tanks, communication battalions, motorcyclists, and cavalry.
From "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
John McGinn bought a bunch of fouls; Oli McBurnie battled hard in what McGinn called a "thankless task"; there were some fleeting moments when the crowd got energised and hope, or perhaps delusion, took hold.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026
With just over a minute left in the game, Rams cornerback Josh Wallace battled with Broncos receiver Pat Bryant before intercepting a Bo Nix pass at the Rams’ seven-yard line.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026
Heavy rains have killed eight people in Thailand since mid-September, the government said Monday as Bangkok battled flooding for a fourth consecutive day, with at least eight more confirmed dead in neighbouring Myanmar.
From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 2026
The stock market this year has battled concerns surrounding the cost of the AI build-out.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 27, 2026
I know we probably watched TV and played Hot Wheels and Lego, probably battled over Pokemon cards, but the purple elephant escapade wasn’t a one-time deal.
From "Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet" by Joanne Proulx
Tammy Faye Bakker died while battling cancer in 2007.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
A 12-year-old girl who spent time in hospital battling an aggressive form of cancer has launched a petition calling for improvements to the food dished up to patients.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
“It’s not a secret we’ve been battling all season,” Alvarez told reporters Sunday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026
Indonesia has been battling fires for weeks in parts of Borneo and Sumatra, sending suffocating haze across the islands and neighbouring Malaysia and Singapore.
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
When Japan occupied Indochina during World War II, he slipped across the border from China into Vietnam and formed the Viet Minh, a guerrilla force that began battling the invaders.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
