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grapple

[grap-uh l]
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verb (used without object), grap·pled, grap·pling.
  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 by with): He was grappling with a boy twice his size.
  5. to try to overcome or deal (usually followed by with): to grapple with a problem.
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verb (used with object), grap·pled, grap·pling.
  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.
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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.
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Origin of grapple

1520–30; apparently a frequentative of Old English gegrǣppian to seize; associated with grapnel
Related formsgrap·pler, nounin·ter·grap·ple, verb, in·ter·grap·pled, in·ter·grap·pling.un·grap·pled, adjective

Synonyms

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5. struggle, contend, wrestle, cope, tussle.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for grappler

Historical Examples

  • I saw it strike the cable steamship Grappler broadside on and capsize her.

    The San Francisco Calamity

    Various

  • I was at Plymouth dreading to hear of him; he sent in letters, but the Grappler was under orders for Portsmouth.

    Persuasion

    Jane Austen

  • At six, A.M., December 30th, all was in readiness for the Grappler to leave the harbour.

  • When Timéa looked out of the cabin window, she only saw that Timar stood at the bow with a grappler in his hand.

British Dictionary definitions for grappler

grapple

verb
  1. to come to grips with (one or more persons), esp to struggle in hand-to-hand combat
  2. (intr foll by with) to cope or contendto grapple with a financial problem
  3. (tr) to secure with a grapple
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noun
  1. any form of hook or metal instrument by which something is secured, such as a grapnel
    1. the act of gripping or seizing, as in wrestling
    2. a grip or hold
  3. a contest of grappling, esp a wrestling match
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Derived Formsgrappler, noun

Word Origin

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

Word Origin and History for grappler

n.

1620s, agent noun from grapple (v.).

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grapple

n.

late 13c., from Old French grapil "hook" (see grapnel). The verb is 1520s, "seize and hold fast," from the noun. Sense of "battle, struggle (with)" is from 1590s. Related: Grappled; grappling.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper