English
rank|Paris|expression|Duke|735|battle|bound|York|impossible
Etymology
From Old French bataille (French bataille), from Proto-Romance battualia, from Latin battalia �fighting and fencing exercises of soldiers and gladiators�, from batuere �to strike, beat�.
Pronunciation
AHD|b�t'(�)l, IPA|/�bæt(�)l/, SAMPA|/"b{t(@)l/
audio|en-us-battle.ogg|Audio (US)
:Rhymes: Rhymes:English:-æt�l|-æt�l
Hyphenation: bat·tle
Noun
en-noun
- A general action, fight, or encounter, in which all the divisions of an army are or may be engaged; an engagement; a combat.
- 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.
- obsolete A division of an army; a battalion.
#: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.
- obsolete The main body, as distinct from the van and rear; battalia.
Translations
rfc-trans
Albanian: betejë f
Arabic: ARchar|عرا�
Bosnian: bitka f, borba f, boj m
Catalan: batalla f
Chinese: ç�鬥; æ�°é¬¥
Croatian: bitka f, boj m
Czech: bitva f (1), boj m (1,2), zápas m (2)
Danish: slag
Dutch: slag m, veldslag m, gevecht n (1), strijd f (1,2)
Esperanto: batalo
Finnish: taistelu
French: bataille f, lutte f
German: Schlacht f
Greek: t+|el|μά�η|f|sc=Grek
Hebrew: קר� (qrav) m (1), ���ק (maavaq) m (2)
Hungarian: csata
Italian: battaglia f
mid
Japanese: �� (����, tatakai)
Korean: ì �í�¬
Kurdish: KUchar|کارزا�
Latin: dimicatio|dīmic�ti� f, proelium n, pugna|pūgna f
Lithuanian: mūšis m
Old English: guþ|gūþ, wig#Old English|wīġ
Polish: bitwa f
Portuguese: batalha f
Romanian: b�t�lie f
Russian: биÑ�ва (bÃtva) f; бой (boj) m; Ñ�Ñ�ажение (srazhénie) n; боÑ�Ñ�ба (bar'bá) f
Serbian:
:Cyrillic: би�ка f, бо�ба f, бо� m
:Roman: bitka f, borba f, boj m
Slovak: bitka f (1), boj m (2)
Spanish: batalla f
Swedish: slag n
Turkish: cenkn, sava�n
Synonyms
conflict; encounter; contest; action.
Related terms
battle it out
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 mêlée. --Thackeray.
drawn battle = one in which neither party gains the victory.
to do battle or 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
Usage notes
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, 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.<BR><small>(material dates from 1913)</small>
<!-- material copied from Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) -->
Verb
en-verb|battl|ing
- intransitive: To join in battle; to contend in fight; as, to battle over theories.
- transitive: To assail in battle; to fight.
Translations
rfc-trans
Catalan: [1] fer la guerra a *Finnish: taistella
German: bekämpfen :de:bekämpfen|(de); bekriegen :de:bekriegen|(de)
Slovak: bojovať
Swedish: strida
Turkish: cenk etmek, sava�mak
References
R:1913
ang:battle
ar:battle
de:battle
et:battle
el:battle
fr:battle
gl:battle
ko:battle
io:battle
id:battle
it:battle
kk:battle
ku:battle
hu:battle
pl:battle
pt:battle
ru:battle
simple:battle
fi:battle
sv:battle
te:battle
vi:battle
tr:battle
zh:battle
|
