grapple
Americanverb (used without object)
-
grapples,
present (3rd person singular)
-
grappled,
past participle, past
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grappling
present participle
-
to hold or make fast to something, as with a grapple.
-
to use a grapple.
-
to seize another, or each other, in a firm grip, as in wrestling; clinch.
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to engage in a struggle or close encounter (usually followed bywith ).
He was grappling with a boy twice his size.
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to try to overcome or deal (usually followed bywith ).
to grapple with a problem.
verb (used with object)
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grapples,
present (3rd person singular)
-
grappled,
past participle, past
-
grappling
present participle
-
to seize, hold, or fasten with or as with a grapple.
-
to seize in a grip, take hold of.
The thug grappled him around the neck.
noun
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grapples
plural
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a hook or an iron instrument by which one thing, as a ship, fastens onto another; grapnel.
-
a seizing or gripping.
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a grip or close hold in wrestling or hand-to-hand fighting.
-
a close, hand-to-hand fight.
verb
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to come to grips with (one or more persons), esp to struggle in hand-to-hand combat
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to cope or contend
to grapple with a financial problem
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(tr) to secure with a grapple
noun
-
any form of hook or metal instrument by which something is secured, such as a grapnel
-
-
the act of gripping or seizing, as in wrestling
-
a grip or hold
-
-
a contest of grappling, esp a wrestling match
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
grapplesimple
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grapplessimple
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have grappledperfect
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has grappledperfect
-
am grapplingprogressive
-
are grapplingprogressive
-
is grapplingprogressive
-
have been grapplingperfect progressive
-
has been grapplingperfect progressive
Past
-
grappledsimple
-
had grappledperfect
-
was grapplingprogressive
-
were grapplingprogressive
-
had been grapplingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of grapple
1520–30; apparently a frequentative of Old English gegrǣppian to seize; associated with grapnel
Explanation
When you wrestle with something — literally or figuratively — you grapple with it, or try to overcome it. If you trace the word grapple back to its French roots, you’ll discover that the word originally referred to "a grape hook," a pronged tool used to harvest grapes. If you think about how awkward it would be to harvest grapes, with the individual grapes ready to scatter everywhere, it makes sense that grapple eventually evolved to include a verb form used to describe struggling with something unruly. You might grapple with a budget shortfall, grapple for answers, grapple with a wrestling opponent, or grapple with a new technology.
Vocabulary lists containing grapple
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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.
See Examples For:
Much of the effort also fell on the suppliers of Member’s Mark products, who had to grapple with complex changes, like supplying the new ingredients.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026
Retailers are slimming down product lines as they grapple with higher costs to import, move and store goods.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
Teacher retention is a challenge successive governments have had to grapple with.
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026
The gathering aims to grapple with challenges such as climate change, drug crime, and the Chinese test-firing of a ballistic missile in July that landed in the Pacific Ocean.
From Barron's ● Aug. 31, 2026
She has seen her grapple with the gut-wrenching decision to leave.
From "Enrique's Journey" by Sonia Nazario
Experts say the abrupt about-face on California’s once-heralded nuclear exit reflects a broader trend as the state grapples with an electricity future almost no one saw coming.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
He takes over as the airline grapples with a series of safety and operational challenges, led by last June's fatal Ahmedabad-London crash, a major setback to its ambitions.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
As Greece grapples with a succession of massive wildfires, Theodore Giannaros, a senior wildfire meteorologist at the National Observatory told AFP on Monday the country faced "one of the worst fire crises" in recent memory.
From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026
Blue Owl Capital is aggressively emphasizing its transition to a multi-strategy alternative assets manager as it grapples with investor withdrawals from some of its direct-lending vehicles and investments in software businesses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
As they drew near enough to use their grapples, the captain mounted the rail.
From "The Reader" by Traci Chee
Athletics has long grappled with the issue of maintaining the interest and excitement which it generates at the Olympics throughout the rest of those four-year cycles.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
In 2024, Medford High School in Boston grappled with chronic absenteeism.
From Slate ● Sep. 5, 2026
Court security officers have grappled with dozens of people trying to secure a seat inside 10C.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
Communities across the country have grappled with the rapid spread of data centers, which house the equipment powering AI and computing systems.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
She grappled with the heavy wooden chair, lifting it a few inches off the floor and heaving it with some difficulty across the room until it was next to the roaring fire.
From "Ophie's Ghosts" by Justina Ireland
"Possibly some sort of close inspection and grappling satellite would be another possibility as well."
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
In his post, Amodei urged “building AI at a balanced rate that aims to ensure its safety while still achieving its benefits and grappling with important geopolitical dilemmas.”
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 12, 2026
A new book to explore: Marlon James’ new book, The Disappearers, follows a group of gay men grappling with extreme homophobia in 1980s Jamaica.
From Slate ● Sep. 9, 2026
Elsesser’s first life-altering experience came when he was 5 and witnessed his father grappling with the tragedy of losing his eldest son.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026
What she had made was called a grappling hook, which is something used for climbing up the sides of buildings, usually for a nefarious purpose.
From "The Bad Beginning" by Lemony Snicket
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
