enter the lists

Idioms  

1. Also, enter the fray. Engage in a fight or competition, as in He said he'd be willing to enter the lists well before the primaries, or Whenever people disagreed, she was eager to enter the fray. The first term uses the noun lists in the sense of “a barrier around the arena enclosing medieval jousting tournaments” and was being used figuratively by the late 1500s. The variant uses fray in the sense of “a noisy skirmish or battle,” a usage from the late 1300s.

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Example Sentences

Various forms of African music will enter the lists, not just Fela Kuti; ditto the many offshoots of dance music.

From The Guardian • Aug. 29, 2018

In the end, Knopf declined to enter the lists, but other publishers were not so punctilious.

From The New Yorker • Dec. 4, 2016

“He’s our next best bet to enter the lists with some chance of success,” the dean said.

From New York Times • Aug. 30, 2011

The unexpected element in the race: Britain's long-dormant Liberals, who decided to enter the lists with a candidate of their own.

From Time Magazine Archive

"Will you enter the lists today?" she asked quickly.

From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin