cage match

noun

plural cage matches

1

: a mixed martial arts competition held in a usually hexagonal or octagonal enclosure made of metal bars or wire mesh

… MMA … where combatants punch, kick and grapple their way through a no-holds-barred cage match.

—Rod O'Connor

2

: steel cage match

In pro wrestling a cage match pits two opponents in a locked enclosure, the idea being that only one will walk out victorious.

—Phil Vettel

Word History

First Known Use

1955, in the meaning defined at sense 2