joust

1 of 2

verb

ˈjau̇st 

sometimes

ˈjəst 

or

ˈjüst 

jousted; jousting; jousts

intransitive verb

1

a

: to fight on horseback as a knight or man-at-arms

b

: to engage in combat with lances on horseback

2

: to engage in combat or competition as if in a joust

jousting debaters

jousting bighorn rams

jouster noun

joust

2 of 2

noun

1

a

: a combat on horseback between two knights with lances especially as part of a tournament

b

jousts plural : tournament

2

: a personal combat or competition : struggle

Examples of joust in a Sentence

Verb

The knights jousted against each other.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Advertisement In 2003, Boston’s Pedro Martinez flung Yankees coach Don Zimmer to the ground, two Yankees players jousted with a Fenway Park groundskeeper, Boston manager Grady Little left Martinez in the decisive game too long, and the Yankees won on a walkoff home run by third baseman Aaron Boone. —Bill Shaikin, Los Angeles Times, 1 Nov. 2024

As much as Walz and Vance jousted over the issues with the hopes of boosting their prospective bosses, the CBS News Vice Presidential Debate also served as a personality test for the two. —Phillip M. Bailey, USA TODAY, 2 Oct. 2024

Noun

State of play: Thousands flock to the 16th-century village of Fairhaven in the kingdom of Huntersville every autumn to watch knights joust, feast on turkey legs and test their archery skills. —Ashley Mahoney, Axios, 2 Oct. 2024

Many content creators have engaged in analyses of the feud and the discourse ought to hit a new level when the lyrical joust receives the full documentary treatment. —Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 8 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Anglo-French juster to unite, joust, from Vulgar Latin *juxtare, from Latin juxta near; akin to Latin jungere to join — more at yoke

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

joust

noun

ˈjau̇st

: a combat on horseback between two knights with lances especially as part of a tournament

joust verb

jouster noun