fight

1 of 2

verb

ˈfīt 

fought ˈfȯt  ; fighting

intransitive verb

1

a

: to contend in battle or physical combat

especially : to strive to overcome a person by blows or weapons

The soldiers fought bravely.

b

: to engage in boxing

He will fight for the heavyweight title next month.

2

: to put forth a determined effort

They were fighting to stay awake.

transitive verb

1

a(1)

: to contend against in or as if in battle or physical combat

fought the invaders of his homeland

was fighting a forest fire

(2)

: to box against in the ring

fought several strong contenders

b(1)

: to attempt to prevent the success or effectiveness of

the company fought the takeover attempt

(2)

: to oppose the passage or development of

fight a bill in Congress

2

a

: wage, carry on

fight a battle

b

: to take part in (a boxing match or similar contest)

3

: to struggle to endure or surmount

fight a cold

is fighting cancer

4

a

: to gain by struggle

fights his way through

b

: to resolve by struggle

fought out their differences in court

5

a

: to manage (a ship) in a battle or storm

b

: to cause to struggle or contend

c

: to manage in an unnecessarily rough or awkward manner

fight

2 of 2

noun

1

a

: a hostile encounter : battle, combat

b

: a boxing match

c

: a verbal disagreement : argument

2

: a struggle for a goal or an objective

a fight for justice

3

: strength or disposition for fighting : pugnacity

still full of fight

Phrases

fight shy of

: to avoid facing or meeting

Synonyms

Verb

• battle
• clash (with)
• combat
• scrimmage (with)
• skirmish (with)
• war (against)

Noun

• battle
• clash
• combat
• conflict
• contest
• dustup
• fracas
• fray
• hassle
• scrap
• scrimmage
• scrum
• scuffle
• skirmish
• struggle
• tussle

Examples of fight in a Sentence

Verb

When he was young he was always fighting.

He fought like a tiger.

The U.S. and Germany fought in World Wars I and II.

They vowed to fight the invaders of their homeland.

The U.S. fought Germany in World Wars I and II.

He and his wife are always fighting over money.

We were fighting to protect our jobs.

Noun

A fight broke out in the bar.

When he was young he was always getting into fights.

He got into another fight with his wife about money.

a fight for the heavyweight title

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Duda fled Ukraine into Romania to avoid being drafted to fight in the Ukrainian war. —Joseph Epstein, Newsweek, 10 Dec. 2024

In recent weeks, while fighting abated on one front after Israel reached a ceasefire with Hamas’ Lebanese ally Hezbollah, members of Netanyahu’s cabinet, including his justice and police ministers, have clashed with the judiciary. —Reuters, CNN, 10 Dec. 2024

Noun

Dylan and Baez didn’t get into a fight onstage over the setlist. —Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 11 Dec. 2024

While the fight was supposed to be an exhibition, Anpo didn’t appear to get the memo. —Brian Mazique, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb and Noun

Middle English, from Old English feohtan; akin to Old High German fehtan to fight and perhaps to Latin pectere to comb — more at pectinate

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing fight

• a fight for one's life
• fight a losing battle
• fight back
• fight back tears
• fight back the tears
• fight fire with fire
• fight for
• fight for breath
• fight for one's life
• fight game
• fight it out
• fight like cat and dog
• fight like cats and dogs
• fight off
• fight on
• fight one's way
• fight-or-flight
• fight song
• fight the good fight
• fight to the finish
• fight with
• food fight
• pick a fight
• pillow fight
• pre-fight
• snowball fight

Kids Definition

fight

1 of 2 verb

ˈfīt 

fought ˈfȯt  ; fighting

1

a

: to struggle against another in battle or physical combat

b

: box entry 5 sense 2

2

: to try hard

fighting to stay awake

3

a

: to act for or against : struggle, contend

fight for the right

fight a fire

fight discrimination

b

: to attempt to prevent the success or effectiveness of

fight off a cold

fight

2 of 2 noun

1

a

: a violent struggle between opposing forces : combat, battle

b

: a boxing match

c

: a verbal disagreement

2

: a struggle for a goal or an objective

in a fight for their lives

3

: strength or disposition for fighting

full of fight