brawler
Americannoun
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a person who fights angrily, noisily, and roughly, often under the influence of alcohol.
He was a scrapper and brawler, a drunk and a bully, often hauled before the justices for punching someone.
-
a contentious or argumentative person.
No doubt about it—this congressman is a brawler, but it appears he’s all bark and no bite.
-
a practitioner of a style of boxing characterized by very powerful punches with little variety of technique or skilled footwork.
Most brawlers tend to walk into range with no jabs or setups and very little head movement.
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any computer game of a genre that features hand-to-hand combat, often focused on a hero who is greatly outnumbered.
Join your favorite anime heroes for an epic fight to the finish in this old-school brawler.
Etymology
Origin of brawler
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Paris — There’s a present-day answer to the question that was posed in verse by the French medieval poet and street brawler François Villon: “Where are the snows of yesteryear?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 20, 2026
Opposition leader and Conservative Party head Pierre Poilievre, normally a relentless partisan brawler, has called it "well-crafted and eloquently delivered."
From Barron's ● Jan. 27, 2026
That stifled voice might find comfort in watching Ritchson’s brawler get his bell rung and refuse to back down from the inevitable conflict that might break him.
From Salon ● Feb. 20, 2025
His ads cultivated an image of a legal brawler whose menacing presence on the screen could be used in a plaintiff’s favor.
From New York Times ● Mar. 16, 2024
I request your appreciation of this courtesy, my Lord Farquhart, and as for you, my son, a gentleman’s house may serve strange purposes, but it’s no place for a tavern brawler.
From Ainslee's, Vol. 15, No. 6, July 1905 by Various
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