tussle

1 of 2

noun

tus·​sle ˈtə-səl 

1

: a physical contest or struggle : scuffle

2

: an intense argument, controversy, or struggle

tussle

2 of 2

verb

tussled; tussling ˈtə-s(ə-)liŋ 

intransitive verb

: to struggle roughly : scuffle

Synonyms

Noun

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

Verb

• grapple
• rassle
• scuffle
• wrestle

Examples of tussle in a Sentence

Noun

The suspect was arrested after a tussle with a security guard.

a tussle for control of the company

The President is in for another tussle with Congress.

Verb

Two players tussled for the ball.

The residents of the neighborhood tussled with city hall for years about the broken parking meters.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The tussle resulted in three unsportsmanlike conduct penalties on UCLA, giving USC tremendous field position to open the third quarter. —Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 24 Nov. 2024

As the tussle escalated, Chambers allegedly pulled a knife and struck the older man on the side of the face, slicing his earlobe, cops said. —Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 6 Nov. 2024

Verb

Hawks defenseman Wyatt Kaiser tussled with Canucks counterpart Erik Brännström, and Kaiser was tagged with a roughing penalty. —Phil Thompson, Chicago Tribune, 17 Nov. 2024

But, as groups tussled for a slice of the pie, local tensions flared, writes historian Eiichiro Azuma. —H.m.a. Leow, JSTOR Daily, 1 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English (Scots) tussillen, frequentative of Middle English -tusen, -tousen to tousle — more at touse

First Known Use

Noun

1629, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1638, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

tussle

1 of 2 verb

tus·​sle ˈtəs-əl 

tussled; tussling

ˈtəs-(ə-)liŋ

: scuffle sense 1

tussle

2 of 2 noun

1

: a physical contest or struggle

2

: a rough argument or a struggle against difficult odds