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
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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
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a grip or hold
-
-
a contest of grappling, esp a wrestling match
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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grapplesimple
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grapplessimple
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have grappledperfect
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has grappledperfect
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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:
“As climate change continues to reduce our snowpack, that’s a future that we need to find ways to grapple with,” said Ryan Walker, president of the Siskiyou County Farm Bureau.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei on Wednesday called for international cooperation as their companies grapple with the dangers of unchecked artificial intelligence.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 23, 2026
Bowen adds that the Chinese have demonstrated "space tug capability", saying: "A vehicle can go up to a satellite, can grapple it and move it into a different orbit."
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
Though the exhibition intended to grapple with Galliano’s fall from grace and create a necessary dialogue about the limitations of artistic reverence, the dissent was too strong.
From Salon ● Sep. 5, 2026
Whenever she cracked one system, more challenging ones rose to take its place—and day after day, she was forced to grapple with them alone.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
Kraft and the other analysts at Deutsche Bank made their assessment as the film and TV industry grapples with consolidation, a production pullback in Hollywood and the possible impact of artificial intelligence on entertainment jobs.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026
The appointment comes as Albertsons grapples with falling sales, cautious consumer spending and a need to improve its competitive position.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
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 they drew near enough to use their grapples, the captain mounted the rail.
From "The Reader" by Traci Chee
His Papa Charles grappled the fish, and Walters held their catch.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
“Along with my co-founders and employees, I have grappled with this duality of risk and benefit since the beginning of Anthropic,” he wrote.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
The sport has long grappled with the issue of retaining the attention and excitement it generates at the Olympics throughout those four-year cycles.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
Court security officers have grappled with dozens of people trying to secure a seat inside 10C.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
You have not yet grappled with your own myths and narratives and discovered the plunder everywhere around us.
From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Tech executives and lawmakers around the country have been grappling with the pace of AI’s development and how the technology should be regulated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo's right-wing government has prioritised attracting data centre investments to the Nordic country, which is grappling with record-high unemployment and sluggish economic growth.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
The dynamic between Leo, who runs a bar filled with young queer and trans employees, and Clive, whose teenage son is grappling with his own sexuality, required true intensity.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
Those affected can wait years for diagnosis, and there is no cure - meaning women are left grappling with debilitating pain that can affect their relationships, work, education and mental health.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
They used a doubled segment of rope and the grappling hook to cross to the roof of the drüskelle sector.
From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo
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.
