battle
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈbætl̩/
ipa: [ˈbatʰɫ̩]
enpr: băt'l
ipa: /ˈbætl̩/
ipa: [ˈbæɾɫ̩]
ipa: [bætɫ̩]
rhymes: -ætəl
Forms: form: battles
form: batail
form: battel
form: battell
Etymology: From Middle English batel, batell, batelle, batayle, bataylle, borrowed from Old French bataille, from Late Latin battālia, variant of battuālia (“fighting and fencing exercises”) from Latin battuō (“to strike, hit, beat, fight”), of uncertain origin. Possibly from a Gaulish or Proto-Germanic root from Proto-Indo-European *bʰedʰ- (“to stab, dig”), related to Old English beado (“battle”); or possibly from a Proto-Indo-European *bʰew- (“to hit, strike, beat”). Doublet of battalia and battel. Displaced native Old English ġefeoht, beado, camp, and wīg (“battle”), among others.
Senses: examples: text: the battle of life
text: I returned, and saw vnder the Sunne, That the race is not to the swift, nor the battell to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of vnderstanding, nor yet fauour to men of skil; but time and chance happeneth to them all.
ref: 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Ecclesiastes 9:11:
text: [T]he whole intellectual battle that had at its centre the best poem of the best poet of that day, and had the English Revolution among issues of the strife, was quickening the energies within young Foe's [i.e., Daniel Defoe's] mind when his age was twenty.
ref: 1884, Henry Morley, “Introduction”, in Daniel Defoe, A Journal of the Plague Year: […], London: George Routledge and Sons, Limd.; New York, N.Y.: E. P. Dutton and Co., →OCLC, page v:
text: In truth, Tottenham never really looked like taking all three points and this defeat means they face a battle to reach the knockout stages – with their next home game against PAOK Salonika on 30 November likely to prove decisive.
ref: 2011 November 3, Chris Bevan, “Rubin Kazan 1 – 0 Tottenham”, in BBC Sport, archived from the original on 26 Mar 2019:
text: Australian broadcaster Clive James has admitted that he is losing his long-fought battle with leukaemia.
ref: 2012 June 21, “Clive James: ‘I’ve Lost My Battle with Cancer’”, in ITV News, archived from the original on 21 Jun 2012:
glosses: A contest, a struggle.
glosses: A contest, a struggle.
A one-on-one competition in rapping or breakdance.
topics: government
military
politics
war
glosses: A general action, fight, or encounter, in which all the divisions of an army are or may be engaged; a combat, an engagement.
examples: text: Thenne kyng Arthur made redy his hooſt in x batails and Nero was redy in the felde afore the caſtel Tarabil with a grete hooſt / & he had x batails with many mo peple than Arthur had […]
ref: [1470–1485 (date produced), Thomas Malory, “Capitulum x”, in [Le Morte Darthur], book II (in Middle English), [London: […] by William Caxton], published 31 July 1485, →OCLC, leaf 43, verso; republished as H[einrich] Oskar Sommer, editor, Le Morte Darthur […], London: David Nutt, […], 1889, →OCLC, page 86, lines 28–31:
english: Then King Arthur made ready his host in 10 battles and Nero was ready in the field before the castle Tarabil with a great host / and he had 10 battles with many more people than Arthur had […]
translation: Then King Arthur made ready his host in 10 battles and Nero was ready in the field before the castle Tarabil with a great host / and he had 10 battles with many more people than Arthur had […]
bold_translation_offsets: 43
50
143
150
text: They ſay, that the King diuided his Armie into three Battailes; whereof the Vant-guard onely well ſtrengthened with wings, came to fight.
ref: 1622, Francis, Lord Verulam, Viscount St. Alban [i.e. Francis Bacon], The Historie of the Raigne of King Henry the Seventh, […], London: […] W[illiam] Stansby for Matthew Lownes, and William Barret, →OCLC, page 35:
text: Already Cæſar
Has ravaged more than half the Globe, and ſees
Mankind grown thin by his deſtructive Sword:
Should he go further, Numbers would be wanting
To form new Battels, and ſupport his Crimes.
ref: 1712 (date written), [Joseph] Addison, Cato, a Tragedy. […], London: […] J[acob] Tonson, […], published 1713, →OCLC, Act I, scene i, page 1:
text: No gentleman would appear in the field but on horſeback. To ſerve in any other manner he would have deemed derogatory to his rank. The cavalry, by way of distinction, was called The battle, and on it alone depended the fate of every action. The infantry, collected from the dregs and refuſe of the people, ill armed and worſe diſciplined; was of no account.
ref: 1769, William Robertson, “Section II. View of the Progress of Society in Europe, with Respect to the Command of the National Force Requisite in Foreign Operations.”, in The History of the Reign of the Emperor Charles V. With a View of the Progress of Society in Europe, from the Subversion of the Roman Empire, to the Beginning of the Sixteenth Century. In Three Volumes, volume I, London: Printed by W. and W. Strahan, for W[illiam] Strahan; T[homas] Cadell, […]; and J. Balfour, […], →OCLC, page 87:
text: Once I link up with Lord Bolton and the Freys, I will have more than twelve thousand men. I mean to divide them into three battles and start up the causeway a half-day apart.
ref: 2000 August 8, George R[aymond] R[ichard] Martin, “”, in A Storm of Swords (A Song of Ice and Fire; 3), London: Voyager, →ISBN, page 525:
topics: government
military
politics
war
glosses: A division of an army; a battalion.
examples: text: Iohn Duke of Norfolke, Thomas Earle of Surrey,
Shall haue the leading of the Foot and Horſe.
They thus directed, we will fllow ^([sic])
In the maine Battell, whose puiſſance on either ſide
Shall be well-winged with our cheefeſt Horſe:
This, and Saint George to boote.
ref: c. 1593 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Richard the Third: […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene iii], page 203:
text: hovering aloofe in the fields he suffered Wyat his Van and main Battell (cutting off some of the Reare) to march undisturbed save with one shot, from Knights-Bridge to Charing Chrosse.
ref: 1655, Thomas Fuller, The church-history of Britain from the birth of Jesus Christ until the year M.DC.XLVIII, Book VIII, Century XVI, Section I, §36
text: The artillery, under Waldmann, with whom Herter rode in company, was divided between the vanguard and the “battle,” or main body, which comprised the bulk of the army.
ref: 1868, John Foster Kirk, A History of Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, volume 3, page 395:
topics: government
military
politics
war
glosses: The main body of an army, as distinct from the vanguard and rear; the battalia.
topics: government
military
politics
war
glosses: Clipping of battle buddy.
Derived terms: battailous
battle-array
battle-ax
battle-axe
battle axe
battleball
battle bus
battlebus
battlecraft
Battle Creek
battle cruiser
battle-cruiser
battle cry
battle-damaged
battledress
battle fatigue
battle fatigues
battlefield
battle-field
battle fleet
battlefront
battleful
battle-ground
Battle Ground
battleground
battle ground
battlegroup
battle-hardened
battle honours
battlehorse
battle jacket
battleline
battle-line
battle line
battlemage
battle map
battlemaster
Battle Mountain
Battle of Gaugamela
Battle of Okinawa
battle of the bands
battle of the brains
battle of the bulge
battle of the currents
battle of the forms
battle of the sexes
battle out
battle pass
battle piece
battleplan
battleplane
battler
battle rapper
battle rhythm
battle rifle
battle rope
battle-royal
battle royal
battle-royale
battle royale
battle-sark
battle-scarred
battle-sharp
battleship
battle ship
battleskies
battlesome
battle song
battlespace
battle station
battle stations
battlesuit
battle tank
battle taxi
battle-tested
battle-twig
battle waggon
battle wagon
battlewagon
battleward
battlewards
battlewise
battleworks
battleworthy
battlezone
cauldron battle
cyberbattle
do battle
drawn battle
Father Charles goes down and ends battle
field of battle
fight a losing battle
give battle
gunbattle
half the battle
how goes the battle
join battle
knowing is half the battle
line of battle
line of battle ship
lose one's battle
main battle tank
midbattle
mid-battle
minibattle
no battle plan survives contact with the enemy
no battle plan survives first contact with the enemy
nonbattle
order of battle
pick one's battles
pitched battle
postbattle
prebattle
Richard of York gave battle in vain
running battle
uphill battle
Van Dorn battle flag
wager of battle
Related terms: battlement