duel

[ doo-uhl, dyoo- ]

/ ˈdu əl, ˈdyu- /

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See synonyms for: duel / dueled / dueling / duelled on Thesaurus.com

noun

a prearranged combat between two persons, fought with deadly weapons according to an accepted code of procedure, especially to settle a private quarrel.

any contest between two persons or parties.

verb (used with or without object), du·eled, du·el·ing or (especially British) du·elled, du·el·ling.

to fight in a duel.

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Origin of duel

1585–95; earlier duell<Medieval Latin duellum,Latin: earlier form of bellum war, probably maintained and given sense “duel” by association with Latin duotwo

OTHER WORDS FROM duel

du·el·is·tic; especially British, du·el·lis·tic, adjectiveoutduel, verb (used with object), out·du·eled, out·du·el·ing or (especially British) out·du·elled, out·du·el·ling.

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH duel

dual, duel

Words nearby duel

due, due bill, duecento, due date, due diligence, duel, duelist, duello, duende, duenna, due process of law

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use duel in a sentence

It was during his attempts to decrease the size of the military budget that he called none other than the Minister President of Prussia, Otto von Bismarck, a liar, resulting in the sausage duel.
Five Scientists on the Heroes Who Changed Their Lives - Issue 93: Forerunners|Alan Lightman, Hope Jahren, Robert Sapolsky,|December 2, 2020|Nautilus
This week, the two sides battled it out in a heated duel in one of the most prestigious science journals, Nature.
Can We Trust AI Doctors? Google Health and Academics Battle It Out|Shelly Fan|October 20, 2020|Singularity Hub
There was hope that, if the stars aligned, we could see a duel between Kipchoge and Bekele with both men at their best.
Eliud Kipchoge’s Streak Comes to an End in London|Martin Fritz Huber|October 5, 2020|Outside Online
What the researchers pieced together is that this seemingly harmonious partnership evolved through a duel at the cellular and genetic levels, one that left the ant eggs largely unviable on their own.
How Two Became One: Origins of a Mysterious Symbiosis Found|Viviane Callier|September 9, 2020|Quanta Magazine

For example, a section in the Kentucky Constitution requires all public officials swear they have never participated in a duel.
SDPD Is Punishing Speech Using a 102-Year-Old City Law|Kate Nucci|August 3, 2020|Voice of San Diego
It was a duel on a larger scale, with all the uncertainty and danger that implied.
How Clausewitz Invented Modern War|James A. Warren|November 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
That, then, makes this, for the third year running, duel between Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Amy Poehler.
What's TV's Funniest Show? Our Emmy Awards Comedy Predictions|Kevin Fallon|August 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It is people like the al Wakeel family who pay the harshest price for this military duel.
Israel’s Campaign to Send Gaza Back to the Stone Age|Jesse Rosenfeld|July 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Argentina and Belgium, earlier in the day, had fought out a fascinating duel, not unlike chess on turf.
Costa Rica vs. the Netherlands: A Tale of Two Goalies|Tunku Varadarajan|July 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Drake has been following the case on behalf of Fahmy, who is duel Canadian-Egyptian national.
Egyptian Court Hands Down Stiff Sentences for Al-Jazeera Journalists|Jesse Rosenfeld|June 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
"But I don't quite see that," persisted Spunyarn, strong in his idea that the man who fights a duel is a fool.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
As soon as Michael made sure of the duel, he saw his confidential clerk.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
Button Gwinnett, one of the signers, died of a wound received in a duel.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell
On the Sunday afternoon the conversation turned on the recent duel at Rome.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume II (of 3)|Charles James Wills
But the young nobleman provoked Du Bousquier into a duel where the latter dangerously wounded him.
Repertory Of The Comedie Humaine, Complete, A -- Z|Anatole Cerfberr and Jules Franois Christophe

British Dictionary definitions for duel

duel

/ (ˈdjuːəl) /

noun

a prearranged combat with deadly weapons between two people following a formal procedure in the presence of seconds and traditionally fought until one party was wounded or killed, usually to settle a quarrel involving a point of honour

a contest or conflict between two persons or parties

verb duels, duelling or duelled or US duels, dueling or dueled (intr)

to fight in a duel

to contest closely

Derived forms of duel

dueller or duellist, noun

Word Origin for duel

C15: from Medieval Latin duellum, from Latin, poetical variant of bellum war; associated by folk etymology with Latin duo two

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

duel

Origin of duel

OTHER WORDS FROM duel

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH duel

Words nearby duel

Words related to duel

How to use duel in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for duel

Derived forms of duel

Word Origin for duel