grapple

[grap-uhl]

verb (used without object)

grappled, grappling 

1. to hold or make fast to something, as with a grapple.

2. to use a grapple.

3. to seize another, or each other, in a firm grip, as in wrestling; clinch.

4. to engage in a struggle or close encounter (usually followed bywith ).

   He was grappling with a boy twice his size.

5. to try to overcome or deal (usually followed bywith ).

   to grapple with a problem.

   Synonyms: tussle, cope, wrestle, contend, struggle

verb (used with object)

grappled, grappling 

1. to seize, hold, or fasten with or as with a grapple.

2. to seize in a grip, take hold of.

   The thug grappled him around the neck.

noun

1. a hook or an iron instrument by which one thing, as a ship, fastens onto another; grapnel.

2. a seizing or gripping.

3. a grip or close hold in wrestling or hand-to-hand fighting.

4. a close, hand-to-hand fight.

grapple

/ ˈɡræpəl /

verb

1. to come to grips with (one or more persons), esp to struggle in hand-to-hand combat

2. to cope or contend

   to grapple with a financial problem

3. (tr) to secure with a grapple

noun

1. any form of hook or metal instrument by which something is secured, such as a grapnel

2. 1. the act of gripping or seizing, as in wrestling

   2. a grip or hold

3. a contest of grappling, esp a wrestling match

Other Word Forms

• grappler noun
• intergrapple verb
• ungrappled adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of grapple¹

1520–30; apparently a frequentative of Old English gegrǣppian to seize; associated with grapnel

Word History and Origins

Origin of grapple¹

C16: from Old French grappelle a little hook, from grape hook; see _grapnel

Example Sentences

Japan is facing a shortage of Asahi products, including beer and bottled tea, as the drinks giant grapples with the impact of a major cyber-attack that has impacted its operations in the country.

From BBC

Discovery sued China-based AI firm MiniMax for copyright infringement, the second lawsuit that major studios have filed as the entertainment industry grapples with the growth of AI tools.

From Los Angeles Times

Alex, whom we come to find has a history of violence, grapples with this in many ways.

From Salon

Unlike Ari Aster’s “Eddington,” which spent far too much time telling the viewer exactly what they already knew about our postmodern psychosis, Anderson grapples with not just what humanity is, but what it can become.

From Salon

The government now has to grapple with an insurgent party with no track record in office and which is eroding Labour's, not just the Conservatives', vote.

From BBC

Related Words

• confront 
• contend 
• cope 
• deal with