fisticuff
Americannoun
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a cuff or blow with the fist.
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fisticuffs, combat with the fists.
verb (used with or without object)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of fisticuff
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.
It was not often that my siblings had true fights, but when they did, they were monster, one-on-one fisticuff affairs, and Helen had picked the Mount Everest of fighters.
From "The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother" by James McBride
The good Geoffrey told of his fight, of situations obtained and lost, of fisticuff encounters, of quarrels and blows....
From A Nest of Spies by Allain, Marcel
He was not without skill at fisticuff, was Hackley.
From Captivating Mary Carstairs by Crosby, Raymond Moreau
But this was no cadet fisticuff; it was a serious matter, and I needed a friend.
From Kitty's Conquest by King, Charles
But one day, to show his own wonderful powers of fisticuff, the king summoned a crowd of his warriors to his palace, and made them form a great ring.
From O'er Many Lands, on Many Seas by Stables, Gordon
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.
