challenge

[ chal-inj ]

/ ˈtʃæl ɪndʒ /

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See synonyms for: challenge / challenged / challenges / challenging on Thesaurus.com

noun

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

something that by its nature or character serves as a call to battle, contest, special effort, etc.: Space exploration offers a challenge to humankind.

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

a demand to explain, justify, etc.: a challenge to the treasurer to itemize expenditures.

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

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

Law. a formal objection to the qualifications of a particular juror, to his or her serving, or to the legality of an entire jury.Compare peremptory challenge.

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

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

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

verb (used with object), chal·lenged, chal·leng·ing.

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

to take exception to; call in question: to challenge the wisdom of a procedure.

to demand as something due or rightful.

Military. to halt and demand identification or countersign from.

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

to have a claim to; invite; arouse; stimulate: a matter which challenges attention.

to assert that (a vote) is invalid.

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

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

Archaic. to lay claim to.

verb (used without object), chal·lenged, chal·leng·ing.

to make or issue a challenge.

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

adjective

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.

OTHER WORDS FOR challenge

11 dare, bid, invite.

12 question, impute, doubt.

See synonyms for challenge on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of challenge

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

historical usage of challenge

The English verb challenge comes from Middle English kalange(n), chalenge(n) “to accuse, claim,” which comes from the Old French verb calonger, calanger, chalonger, chalanger (with still more variants) “to protest, complain,” from Latin calumniārī “to bring false accusations, interpret wrongly, misrepresent, criticize unfairly,” itself a derivation of the noun calumnia, with legal meanings “false accusation, false claim, false pretenses, the making of unfounded objections, trickery.” (The Old French noun chalenge, chalonge is a regular development of Latin calumnia: the cluster -mni- becomes -nge in French, as Latin somnium “dream” becomes Old French songe with the same meaning.)
Latin calumnia is the direct source of calumny, “a false and malicious statement,” so calumny and challenge are doublets (words deriving ultimately from the same source). In fact, an earlier, now obsolete meaning of challenge was “an accusation or false claim.”
The legal sense of challenge, “to object to (a juror or evidence),” dates from the 16th century. The verb sense “to summon someone to a fight or a duel” first appears in Shakespeare’s Love’s Labour’s Lost (1598).

OTHER WORDS FROM challenge

chal·lenge·a·ble, adjectivepre·chal·lenge, verb (used with object), pre·chal·lenged, pre·chal·leng·ing.re·chal·lenge, verb (used with object), re·chal·lenged, re·chal·leng·ing.un·chal·lenge·a·ble, adjective

un·chal·lenge·a·bly, adverb

Words nearby challenge

chalk stripe, chalk talk, chalk up, chalky, challah, challenge, challenged, challenge diet, challenger, challenging, challis

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use challenge in a sentence

The federal government reacted by increasing prison sentences, making it harder to challenge wrongful convictions, enabling police searches and seizures, and enacting strict criminal codes.
How “abolish ICE” helped bring abolitionist ideas into the mainstream|Nicole Narea|July 9, 2020|Vox
That concept—of delineating work and home as the two spaces coalesce—is ultimately the challenge of videoconferencing during a pandemic.
Microsoft’s solution to Zoom fatigue is to trick your brain|Tanya Basu|July 9, 2020|MIT Technology Review
It’s unclear if the union will challenge that start date if its criteria aren’t met.
Morning Report: Latinos Underrepresented So Far in Redistricting Effort|Voice of San Diego|July 9, 2020|Voice of San Diego
For that reason, the researchers still like the idea of an iron patch, and they describe some research identifying the challenges and working toward solutions.
The Athlete's Guide to Boosting Iron|Alex Hutchinson|July 8, 2020|Outside Online

What we have learned is to work collaboratively like never before, to challenge our thinking, and to accelerate the drug development process.
Healthcare is in the midst of a ‘paradigm shift’|Alan Murray|July 8, 2020|Fortune
Harris is unlikely to see a challenge from Villaraigosa, either.
The Golden State Preps for the ‘Red Wedding’ of Senate Races|David Freedlander|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Whatever the FBI says, the truthers will create alternative hypotheses that try to challenge the ‘official story.’
Was Sony Hit With a Second Hack?|Shane Harris|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The island faces an environmental challenge of huge proportions.
Goodbye, Bahamas. Hello, Havana!|Clive Irving|December 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Less than six hours later, the FARC potentially came good on the challenge.
Did The U.S.-Cuba Deal Help Drive A Rebel Ceasefire in Colombia?|Richard McColl|December 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The government has blocked every opportunity to challenge this case on its merits.
Special Forces’ $77M ‘Hustler’ Hits Back|Kevin Maurer|December 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I know that in putting this before you I challenge some of the most popular affectations of cultivated people.
The Salvaging Of Civilisation|H. G. (Herbert George) Wells
He even fancied that something of challenge flashed from her, though without definite words or gesture.
The Wave|Algernon Blackwood
Hilda impetuously turned her head; their glances met for an instant, in suspicion, challenge, animosity.
Hilda Lessways|Arnold Bennett
The challenge was accepted and the hay-wagon driven round and the trial commenced.
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
In a flash Isabel had responded with a challenge of appeal, which that accomplished dame was quick to understand.
Ancestors|Gertrude Atherton

British Dictionary definitions for challenge

challenge

/ (ˈtʃælɪndʒ) /

verb (mainly tr)

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

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

to make demands on; stimulatethe job challenges his ingenuity

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

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

to lay claim to (attention, etc)

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

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

noun

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

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

a demanding or stimulating situation, career, object, etc

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

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

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)

Derived forms of challenge

challengeable, adjectivechallenger, noun

Word Origin for challenge

C13: from Old French chalenge, from Latin calumnia calumny

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

challenge

OTHER WORDS FOR challenge

Origin of challenge

historical usage of challenge

OTHER WORDS FROM challenge

Words nearby challenge

Words related to challenge

How to use challenge in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for challenge

Derived forms of challenge

Word Origin for challenge