Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

battle royal

play
noun \-rȯi-ˈal\
variants: or

battle royale

Definition of battle royal

plural

battles royal

or

battle royals

or

battle royale

or

battle royales

  1. 1a :  a fight participated in by more than two combatants; especially :  one in which the last fighter in the ring or the last fighter standing is declared the winnerb :  a violent struggle

  2. 2 :  a heated dispute

People Are Reading

fighting-words
Them's Fightin' Words
decimate-video
Is it wrong to use 'decimate' to mean 'destroy'?
perfect-storm
Stormy Weather
alt-592453dea3986
Read on to Become Part of the Dictionary 'Illuminati'

Examples of battle royal in a sentence

  1. the dysfunctional couple next door had another one of their battles royal last night

1671

First Known Use of battle royal

1671

battle royal Synonyms

Synonyms
altercation, argle-bargle [chiefly British], argy-bargy [chiefly British], argument, bicker, brawl, contretemps, controversy, cross fire, disagreement, dispute, donnybrook, falling-out, fight, hassle, imbroglio, kickup, misunderstanding, quarrel, rhubarb, row, scrap, set-to, spat, squabble, tiff, wrangle
Related Words
clash, run-in, skirmish, tangle, tussle; logomachy; feud, vendetta; attack, contention, dissension (also dissention); debate, difference, disputation; fuss, objection, protest, protestation; affray [chiefly British], fisticuffs, fracas, fray, free-for-all, melee (also mêlée); catfight

Learn More about battle royal

  1. Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for battle royal Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about battle royal

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up battle royal? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

malleable

play

capable of being altered or controlled

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. suborn "to induce secretly to do an unlawful thing"

  2. nutjob 'a mentally unbalanced person'

  3. collusion 'Secret cooperation for an illegal or dishonest purpose'

  4. counsel Is it 'council' or 'counsel'?

  5. witch hunt Lookups spiked after Trump used the word in a tweet

SEE ALL

BROWSE DICTIONARY

battle royal

WORD GAMES

Take a 3-minute break and test your skills!

  • peter-bruegel-tower-of-babel-painting
  • What language does pajama come from?
True or False

Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ
Bee Cubed

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

alt-592453dea3986
Read on to Become Part of the Dictionary 'Illuminati'

Secrets will be revealed.

alt-592333459542f
How 'Namaste' Entered The English Language

"I bow to you"

boulton-and-park
Notes on 'Campy'

Plus: how to use n'importe in a sentence

sin
What is 'Sin'?

It's striking how little this word has changed

Ask the Editors

decimate-video
Is it wrong to use 'decimate' to mean 'destroy'?

Language changes

serial-comma
The Serial Comma

Why don't they call it the Merriam-Webster comma?

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

peter-bruegel-tower-of-babel-painting
Where in the World? A Quiz

Do you know what languages these words come from?

Take the quiz
wide-eyed-dog-smelling-rose
What's that Smell?! Quiz

Words for odors and such...

Take the quiz
True or False
True or False?

Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.

Take the quiz
Bee Cubed
Bee Cubed

Listen to the words and spell through all three levels.

Play the game
Examples: battle royal in a sentence