grapple

American  

[grap-uhl] / ˈgræp əl /

verb (used without object)

• grapples,
  present (3rd person singular)
• grappled,
  past participle,  past
• grappling
  present participle

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

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verb (used with object)

• grapples,
  present (3rd person singular)
• grappled,
  past participle,  past
• grappling
  present participle

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

• grapples
  plural

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 British  

/ 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

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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

Derived Forms

• grappler
  noun
• intergrapple
  verb
• ungrappled
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• grapples
  plural

Participles

• grappling
  present
• grappled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• grapple
  simple
• grapples
  simple
• have grappled
  perfect
• has grappled
  perfect
• am grappling
  progressive
• are grappling
  progressive
• is grappling
  progressive
• have been grappling
  perfect progressive
• has been grappling
  perfect progressive

Past

• grappled
  simple
• had grappled
  perfect
• was grappling
  progressive
• were grappling
  progressive
• had been grappling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will grapple
  simple
• will have grappled
  perfect
• will be grappling
  progressive
• will have been grappling
  perfect progressive

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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

grapple grapples grappled grappling

Nearly all are requiring ethics courses along the way — as educators continue to grapple with cheating and with fears that heavy AI use will erode critical thinking.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026

Ethiopia also continues to grapple with armed insurgencies in Oromia and Amhara, the country's two most-populous regional states.

From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026

He enslaved more than 100 people at Mount Vernon, and historians continue to grapple with the contradiction between the nation’s founding ideals and the human bondage practiced by its first president, among his strong mythology.

From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026

Analysts had expected a 0.1 percent uptick in retail sales in July, and all eyes are on US consumer health as households grapple with inflation while drawing down on their savings.

From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026

Real casual, he allows as how if I was to drag a grapple along the bottom, I might hook up on my traps.

From "The Young Man and the Sea" by Rodman Philbrick

The organization is racing to fill those positions—a steep challenge in an industry that grapples with persistent labor shortages.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 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

Nor will it be any use as he grapples with the country's huge debts, changing demographics or public concerns about immigration.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

Finding the right balance between supporting family caregivers and keeping costs under control will be a continuing struggle as the U.S. grapples with the need for care for aging baby boomers.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026

As they drew near enough to use their grapples, the captain mounted the rail.

From "The Reader" by Traci Chee

The revelation came as the country grappled with whistleblower Edward Snowden’s leaks exposing the vast reach of the agency’s surveillance.

From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026

Burnham -- who took power last month -- has faced some criticism for not directly referencing climate change sooner, as Britain has grappled for weeks with widespread drought, extreme heat and wildfires.

From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026

Investors grappled with a fresh bout of concerns that renewed fighting would snarl oil markets and complicate the Fed’s inflation fight.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026

"I grappled with what was the best thing to do for me, for the country, for the government," Sir Keir said.

From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026

Instead, he grappled with an intensely painful realization—one that would have unsettling relevance to his bitter experience in Vietnam.

From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin

She is now in the middle of the three most high-stakes media battles in years—she’s the defender-in-chief of legacy entertainment companies grappling with industry change.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

Iran had already been grappling with sky-high inflation before the war, which fuelled an anti-government protest movement that peaked in January.

From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026

The companies themselves are grappling with rising costs for materials, labor and fuel.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026

OpenAI has been grappling with legal hurdles too.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

Even as he spoke, a beat of wings went skyward off to the right—a mountain eagle, grappling a white goose in his talons, heavy prey hooked from a farmyard.

From "The Odyssey" by Homer

Related Words

• confront
• contend
• cope