affray

1 of 2

noun

af·​fray ə-ˈfrā 

1

archaic : fray, brawl

2

chiefly British : a fight in a public place that disturbs the peace

affray

2 of 2

verb

affrayed; affraying; affrays

transitive verb

archaic

: startle, frighten

Synonyms of affray

Noun

• brawl
• altercation

Examples of affray in a Sentence

Noun

the police had to break up an affray that started between fans of the opposing teams

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

That same night, rapper Lil Tjay was arrested in connection with the shooting and was booked into Broward County Jail on a disorderly conduct — affray charge, with bail set at $500. —Steven J. Horowitz, Variety, 10 Apr. 2026

The incident began with an affray, or fight. —Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE, 10 Apr. 2026

Lil Tjay was briefly jailed on suspicion of misdemeanor disorderly conduct-affray before he was released on $500 bond. —Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 8 Apr. 2026

So far, one man, 24-year-old Tione Jayden Merritt, has been arrested on a first-degree misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct - affray. —David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 7 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English afray, affray "fright, consternation, assault, brawl," borrowed from Anglo-French effrei, esfrei, affrai, noun derivative of esfreier, effreier, affraier "to frighten, startle" — more at affray entry 2

Verb

Middle English afraien, affraien "to disturb, frighten, attack, brawl," borrowed from Anglo-French esfreier, effreier, (with prefix alternation) affreer, affraier "to frighten, startle," going back to Gallo-Romance *exfridāre, from Latin ex- ex- entry 1 + Gallo-Romance *-fridāre, derivative from Old Low Franconian *friðu "peace, tranquility," going back to Germanic *friþu- (whence Old English friþ "peace, security, protection," Old Saxon friđu, Old High German fridu, Old Norse friðr), derivative, with the suffix *-tu-, of *fri(j)a- free entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

affray

noun

af·​fray

ə-ˈfrā

: a noisy quarrel or fight

Legal Definition

affray

noun

af·​fray ə-ˈfrā 

: a fight between two or more people in a public place that disturbs the peace

Etymology

Noun

Middle French affrai, effrai fright, disturbance, from affraier, effreer to terrify