Main Entry:

¹fight

Pronunciation:

\ˈfīt\

Function:

verb

Inflected Form(s):

fought \ˈfȯt\ ; fight·ing

Etymology:

Middle English, from Old English feohtan; akin to Old High German fehtan to fight and perhaps to Latin pectere to comb — more at pectinate

Date:

before 12th century

intransitive verb1 a: to contend in battle or physical combat ; especially : to strive to overcome a person by blows or weapons b: to engage in boxing2: to put forth a determined efforttransitive verb1 a (1): to contend against in or as if in battle or physical combat (2): to box against in the ring b (1): to attempt to prevent the success or effectiveness of <the company fought the takeover attempt> (2): to oppose the passage or development of <fight a bill in Congress>2 a: wage, carry on <fight a battle> b: to take part in (as a boxing match)3: to struggle to endure or surmount <fight a cold>4 a: to gain by struggle <fights his way through> b: to resolve by struggle <fought out their differences in court>5 a: to manage (a ship) in a battle or storm b: to cause to struggle or contend c: to manage in an unnecessarily rough or awkward manner

— fight shy of

: to avoid facing or meeting