grapple

[ grap-uhl ]

/ ˈgræp əl /

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See synonyms for: grapple / grappling / grappler on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object), grap·pled, grap·pling.

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.

to engage in a struggle or close encounter (usually followed by with): He was grappling with a boy twice his size.

to try to overcome or deal (usually followed by with): to grapple with a problem.

verb (used with object), grap·pled, grap·pling.

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

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

a seizing or gripping.

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

a close, hand-to-hand fight.

OTHER WORDS FOR grapple

5 struggle, contend, wrestle, cope, tussle.

See synonyms for grapple on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of grapple

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

OTHER WORDS FROM grapple

grappler, nounin·ter·grap·ple, verb, in·ter·grap·pled, in·ter·grap·pling.un·grap·pled, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use grapple in a sentence

Moses lost her job, and then her home, as she grappled with pain and illness after her spinal surgery.
Patients Screwed in Spine Surgery ‘Scam’|The Center for Investigative Reporting|November 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
With Lindsay Lohan, we were watching the horror show of self-sabotage, and grappled with our role in feeding into it.
Amanda Bynes Has a ‘Microchip’ in Her Brain. Why Are We Fascinated By This?|Kevin Fallon|October 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Three years ago, as Texas grappled with its driest year on record, Governor Rick Perry declared a weekend of prayer for rain.
America’s Axis of Drought|Kate Galbraith|March 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Instead, Obama sometimes seemed to forget the word altogether as he grappled with the forces of nope.
Ted Kennedy, Bin Laden & Gay Marriage: How Obama Got His Audacity Back|Michael Daly|May 10, 2012|DAILY BEAST

At the White House, he grappled with the endless series of Clinton mini-scandals.
Murdoch’s Secret Weapon|Lloyd Grove|July 21, 2011|DAILY BEAST
He received the blow on his arm, grappled with the assassin, and throwing him on the ground despatched him with his own dagger.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell
At length they boldly grappled, and laid us close aboard, and we as bravely beat them off again.
The City Bride (1696)|Joseph Harris
It is not until a task is fairly grappled with that its difficulties and perils become fully manifest.
Toilers of the Sea|Victor Hugo
They were foiled by the valour of the British seamen who, under a heavy fire, grappled the blazing ships and towed them ashore.
The Political History of England - Vol. X.|William Hunt
I had the wit at the very outset to see that the thing must be grappled with.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 146, February 18, 1914|Various

British Dictionary definitions for grapple

grapple

/ (ˈɡræpəl) /

verb

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

(intr foll by with) to cope or contendto grapple with a financial problem

(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

Derived forms of grapple

grappler, noun

Word Origin for grapple

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

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

grapple

OTHER WORDS FOR grapple

Origin of grapple

OTHER WORDS FROM grapple

Words related to grapple

How to use grapple in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for grapple

Derived forms of grapple

Word Origin for grapple