battle-tested

adjective

bat·​tle-test·​ed

1

: shown to be reliable and effective by being used in war

A twin-engine medium bomber, the rugged B-25 was battle-tested and easy to fly in bad weather.

—Otha C. Spencer, Smithsonian Air & Space, August/September 1986

2

: having experienced and been toughened by battle

battle-tested soldiers

When the Americans and Saigon finally found an effective counter-insurgency strategy and took control of the countryside from the Viet Cong, Hanoi responded by sending in whole divisions of battle-tested troops.

—Evan Thomas and John Barry, Newsweek, 16 Nov. 2009

—often used figuratively

The Yankees' pen, moreover, is battle-tested. Rivera, and his setup men, lefty Mike Stanton and righties Jeff Nelson and Ramiro Mendoza, have a combined 1.45 ERA over 105 2/3 innings of postseason experience.

—Tom Verducci, Sports Illustrated, 20 Sept. 1999

Word History

First Known Use

1914, in the meaning defined at sense 2

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