challenge

American  

[chal-inj] / ˈtʃæl ɪndʒ /

noun

• challenges
  plural

1. a call or summons to engage in any contest, as of skill, strength, etc.

2. something that by its nature or character serves as a call to battle, contest, special effort, etc..

   Space exploration offers a challenge to humankind.

3. a call to fight, as a battle, a duel, etc.

4. a demand to explain, justify, etc..

   a challenge to the treasurer to itemize expenditures.

5. difficulty in a job or undertaking that is stimulating to one engaged in it.

6. Military. the demand of a sentry for identification or a countersign.

7. Law. a formal objection to the qualifications of a particular juror, to that juror serving, or to the legality of an entire jury.

8. the assertion that a vote is invalid or that a voter is not legally qualified.

9. Biology. the process of inducing or assessing physiological or immunological activity by exposing an organism to a specific substance.

10. Hunting. the crying of a hound on finding a scent.

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verb (used with object)

• challenges,
  present (3rd person singular)
• challenged,
  past participle,  past
• challenging
  present participle

1. to summon to a contest of skill, strength, etc.

   Synonyms:

   invite, bid, dare

2. to take exception to; call in question.

   to challenge the wisdom of a procedure.

   Synonyms:

   doubt, impute, question

3. to demand as something due or rightful.

4. Military. to halt and demand identification or countersign from.

5. Law. to take formal exception to (a juror or jury).

6. to have a claim to; invite; arouse; stimulate.

   a matter which challenges attention.

7. to assert that (a vote) is invalid.

8. to assert that (a voter) is not qualified to vote.

9. to expose an organism to a specific substance in order to assess its physiological or immunological activity.

10. Archaic. to lay claim to.

verb (used without object)

• challenges,
  present (3rd person singular)
• challenged,
  past participle,  past
• challenging
  present participle

1. to make or issue a challenge.

2. Hunting. (of hounds) to cry or give tongue on picking up the scent.

adjective

1. donated or given by a private, corporate, or government benefactor on condition that the recipient raise an additional specified amount from the public.

   a challenge grant.

challenge British  

/ ˈtʃælɪndʒ /

verb

1. to invite or summon (someone to do something, esp to take part in a contest)

2. (also intr) to call (something) into question; dispute

3. to make demands on; stimulate

   the job challenges his ingenuity

4. to order (a person) to halt and be identified or to give a password

5. law to make formal objection to (a juror or jury)

6. to lay claim to (attention, etc)

7. (intr) hunting (of a hound) to cry out on first encountering the scent of a quarry

8. to inject (an experimental animal immunized with a test substance) with disease microorganisms to test for immunity to the disease

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noun

1. a call to engage in a fight, argument, or contest

2. a questioning of a statement or fact; a demand for justification or explanation

3. a demanding or stimulating situation, career, object, etc

4. a demand by a sentry, watchman, etc, for identification or a password

5. an assertion that a person is not entitled to vote or that a vote is invalid

6. law a formal objection to a person selected to serve on a jury ( challenge to the polls ) or to the whole body of jurors ( challenge to the array )

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• challenger
  noun
• prechallenge
  verb (used with object)
• rechallenge
  verb (used with object)
• challengeable
  adjective
• unchallengeable
  adjective
• unchallengeably
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• challenges
  plural

Participles

• challenging
  present
• challenged
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• challenge
  simple
• challenges
  simple
• have challenged
  perfect
• has challenged
  perfect
• am challenging
  progressive
• are challenging
  progressive
• is challenging
  progressive
• have been challenging
  perfect progressive
• has been challenging
  perfect progressive

Past

• challenged
  simple
• had challenged
  perfect
• was challenging
  progressive
• were challenging
  progressive
• had been challenging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will challenge
  simple
• will have challenged
  perfect
• will be challenging
  progressive
• will have been challenging
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of challenge

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English chalenge, from Old French, variant of chalonge, from Latin calumnia “false statement”; see calumny

Explanation

A challenge is something that puts you to the test — like running your first marathon or reading War and Peace. Challenge, as a verb, is derived from a Latin word meaning "to accuse falsely," and it is still used much as it was in the 13th century, in the sense of questioning whether something is true or right. Students sometimes challenge a weeknight curfew, and lawyers might challenge the evidence submitted by the other side in a lawsuit. Challenge is also used as a noun for a competition in which people challenge one another to prove that they’re the best at something.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

challenge challenges challenged challenging

Tapper reminded Cassidy that the senator previously called for someone to challenge “crazy stupid things” that undermine confidence in immunization and asked whether Trump’s statements qualified.

From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026

“In the end, that’s kind of what our challenge is.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

If confirmed, that would challenge the long-standing assumption that baryon number belongs exclusively to those quarks.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026

But hosting 4,480 Paralympians in one village is an especially unique challenge.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

I did not dare to challenge the beast.

From "Black Star, Bright Dawn" by Scott O'Dell

Flávio’s campaign has used artificial intelligence to bring a giant avatar of Jair Bolsonaro to life at campaign events, drawing legal challenges.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

Researchers say the finding points to a surprising mechanism and challenges the prevailing idea that chronic viral reactivation occurs mainly because of immunosuppression.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026

Several women with busy careers spoke to the BBC about the challenges of juggling their work with motherhood in the only industrialised nation that does not mandate paid parental leave.

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026

The challenges reflect the culmination of a long-standing identity crisis inside Google: whether to prioritize mass-market commercial products, or build tools for scientific research.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026

Supreme Court had grown impatient with challenges to capital punishment.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

Another systematic review found exercises which challenged participants’ balance reduced fall rates by roughly 23%.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026

"Where water companies seek to pass unnecessary costs onto households, they will be challenged," he said.

From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026

He first attracted attention in 2017 as Lord Buckethead, when he challenged then-prime minister Theresa May in the general election.

From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026

Private jailers like The GEO Group successfully challenged the legislation in court.

From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026

Nobody openly challenged gender boundaries—in spite of the wartime crew cuts and men’s underwear.

From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein

"I've had some close calls this year. It is always challenging playing with one of my best friends but I wanted to do my best," said Scheffler.

From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026

German energy giant RWE said it will abandon wind leases off the coast of New York, Louisiana and Northern California near Humboldt, further challenging the Golden State’s clean energy ambitions.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026

That’s in part because last month, Bare and other opponents filed two lawsuits challenging the data center, including one that required they sue their own neighbors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

Assessing opposition to the war is challenging due to censorship.

From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026

Zvezda snorted from inside, as if challenging her threat.

From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack

Related Words

• ask for
• assert
• call for
• claim
• confront
• defy
• demand
• denounce
• impose
• require
• test
• try