battle royal

[ bat-l roi-uhl ]

See synonyms for battle royal on Thesaurus.com

noun,plural battle royals, battles royal.

a fight in which more than two combatants are engaged.
a cockfight in which three, five, or seven fowl are placed simultaneously in the fighting pit to eliminate each other by death or debilitating injury until only the victor remains in fighting condition.

Professional Wrestling. a type of wrestling match in which 15 to 30 wrestlers attempt to stay inside the ring while eliminating competitors by throwing them outside of the ropes until only one wrestler remains and is declared the winner.
a heated argument: After a while the discussion turned into a battle royal.

Origin of battle royal

First recorded in 1665–75 in spelling battail Royal

Also called last man stand·ing (for defs. 1, 3) .

Also battle royale .

word story For battle royal

The term battle royal has had the general meaning of a free-for-all fight with three or more participants since the 17th century. It has also been used to name fight parameters for specific categories of contests, as in cockfighting. It is the official name of a type of wrestling match, but is also applied to other knock-down-drag-out fights, like the one in the first chapter of Ralph Ellison’s classic 1952 novel Invisible Man, in which rich white men force poor Black boys to fight a battle royal : Everyone fought hysterically. It was complete anarchy. Everybody fought everybody else. No group fought together for long. Two, three, four, fought one, then turned to fight each other, were themselves attacked.

Words Nearby battle royal

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use battle royal in a sentence

Fortnite, for example, has become more a hangout spot than just a battle royal game.
‘We want our brands to be where people are’: As gaming becomes a culture touchstone, advertisers toggle in | Seb Joseph | December 1, 2020 | Digiday
A faceless person casually explains that, since he has “to be there anyway,” he “might as well take part in the battle royal.”
American Nightmare: Ralph Ellison’s ‘Invisible Man’ at 60 | Nathaniel Rich | June 28, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
Before long there was enough on the ground to make snowballs, and then a battle royal all around ensued.
The Rover Boys on the Farm | Arthur M. Winfield (AKA Edward Stratemeyer)
Already in New York there had been a battle royal on the subject of the proper bedtime for a little girl.
The Open Question | Elizabeth Robins
Nevertheless, the interval before the battle-royal began was very trying to her.
Court Beauties of Old Whitehall | W. R. H. Trowbridge

The battle royal was waged against Congressman Littlefield of Maine.
A History of Trade Unionism in the United States | Selig Perlman
Even in its beginnings he says, the French and British mobilization of Chinese labor caused a diplomatic battle royal.
Harper's Pictorial Library of the World War, Volume XII | Various

British Dictionary definitions for battle royal

battle royal

noun

a fight, esp with fists or cudgels, involving more than two combatants; melee
a long violent argument

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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