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Melee Has French Roots
English has no shortage of words for confused and noisy fights, some (fray, brawl, scrap) more common than others (donnybrook, fracas). Melee tends to be encountered more often in written rather than spoken English, but it is far from obscure, and has seen increasing use especially in the context of video games featuring some form of hand-to-hand combat. Such games allow players to mix it up with all manner of rivals and baddies from the comfort and safety of their home, with mix being an especially apt word alongside melee: the latter comes from the French word mêlée, which in turn comes from the Old French verb mesler, meaning "to mix."
Synonyms
Examples of melee in a Sentence
Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 22 Nov. 2024
For all the bad that happened in that melee, the silver lining at times are the allegiances showing their true colors; relationships showing their true colors.
—Demetrius Patterson, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Nov. 2024
The two men were among nine people shot — with seven injured — in the melee that started just after 1 a.m. at Central Boulevard and Orange Avenue during a Halloween celebration with many thousands in attendance, according to reports.
—Brian Bell, Orlando Sentinel, 3 Nov. 2024
The melee concluded with Owens hitting a massive senton through Orton, who was perfched on a table in the crowd.
—Blake Oestriecher, Forbes, 2 Nov. 2024
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Dictionary Entries Near melee
Cite this Entry
“Melee.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/melee. Accessed 3 Dec. 2024.
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melee
noun
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