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.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

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

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

How to use duel in a sentence

Dempsey had such a love-hate duel with manager Earl Weaver that, during a dugout argument, they once threw pieces of catching equipment at each other.
Nothing can spoil the first day of spring training. (Though covid sure is giving it a shot.)|Thomas M. Boswell|February 18, 2021|Washington Post
We dismiss the notion that the duel between Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes will in any way decide the GOAT debate.
Just A Quarterback Away From Greatness|Sarah Shachat|February 2, 2021|FiveThirtyEight
Brady will be on the other side, in his new Tampa Bay Buccaneers uniform, ready for another epic quarterback duel one week after defeating Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints.
Aaron Rodgers, entering a showdown with Tom Brady, has gone from chippy to chill|Jerry Brewer|January 22, 2021|Washington Post
That will be a playoff duel between Brees and Tom Brady, the six-time Super Bowl winner for the New England Patriots now in his first season with the Buccaneers.
Saints advance to set up a Drew Brees-Tom Brady showdown in second round|Mark Maske|January 11, 2021|Washington Post

It was an honor society, where leading politicians responded to slights by fighting fatal duels.
We teach students how to understand the U.S., not to love it — or hate it|Daniel Immerwahr|December 23, 2020|Washington Post
The English public walked straight into the trap, although they abhor nothing on earth more than the duelling system.
The Autobiography of a Play|Bronson Howard
My landlord had a great penchant, like other Frenchmen of that day, for conversing on the subject of duelling.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 67, Number 414, April, 1850|Various
And now we will leave them both for awhile, and make a few remarks upon duelling.
Newton Forster|Captain Frederick Marryat
For you must know that the spring is the duelling time, when all the birds go to battle.
Wood Magic|Richard Jefferies
But duelling was a peculiar Southern institution; most Southern people settled their difficulties with pistols.
Beacon Lights of History, Volume XII|John Lord

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 related to duel

How to use duel in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for duel

Derived forms of duel

Word Origin for duel