embattled

adjective

em·bat·tled | \ im-ˈba-tᵊld

How to pronounce embattled (audio)

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Definition of embattled

1a : ready to fight : prepared to give battle here once the embattled farmers stood— R. W. Emerson

b : engaged in battle, conflict, or controversy an embattled official accused of extortion

2a : being a site of battle, conflict, or controversy the embattled capital

b : characterized by conflict or controversy an embattled presidency

Examples of embattled in a Sentence

the embattled coach of a losing team

Recent Examples on the Web Day captures Holiday as a fascinatingly flawed person who was a victor on the stage and, too often, an embattled victim off it. — George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Review: Andra Day is riveting in wildly ambitious film ‘The United States vs. Billie Holiday’," 26 Feb. 2021 But the mounting upheaval in Washington, with an embattled Trump facing the likely prospect of a second impeachment, has heightened the sense the unpredictability. — Washington Post, "Israel launches unusually intense strikes on Iranian positions in Syria," 13 Jan. 2021 The embattled daytime talk show host revealed her health status on The Ellen DeGeneres Show's Twitter feed on Thursday. — James Hibberd, EW.com, "Ellen DeGeneres announces she has COVID-19, talk show shut down," 10 Dec. 2020 And that, the embattled head coach stated, is his main concern. — Nick Moyle, ExpressNews.com, "Texas football still on hold after COVID outbreak," 7 Dec. 2020 Jaguars personnel chief Tom Coughlin chose running back Leonard Fournette instead and stuck with embattled starting quarterback Blake Bortles. — Mark Heim | Mheim@al.com, al, "Texans vs. Jaguars live stream (11/8): How to watch NFL Week 9 online, TV, time," 8 Nov. 2020 Democrats thought their candidate, former Evansville mayor and former state representative Jonathan Weinzapfel, had a real shot to defeat embattled attorney General Curtis Hill. — Chris Sikich, The Indianapolis Star, "It's Election Day. Here are the marquee races in Indiana to watch.," 3 Nov. 2020 Over time, as the law has become more popular and more embattled, pre-existing-condition protections have become so popular that any politician who declines to support them is likely to pay a political price. — Margot Sanger-katz New York Times, Star Tribune, "Trump says he will protect those with pre-existing conditions. But he hasn't," 24 Sep. 2020 The embattled Paycheck Protection Program, rolled out in April to help keep small businesses alive during shutdowns, has long been flagged for possible fraud. — Anne Sraders, Fortune, "JPMorgan flags potentially ‘illegal’ actions of employees and PPP loan recipients," 8 Sep. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'embattled.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries near embattled

embayed mountain

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Last Updated

5 Mar 2021

Cite this Entry

“Embattled.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/embattled. Accessed 7 Mar. 2021.

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More Definitions for embattled

embattled

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of embattled

: engaged in battle or conflict : surrounded by enemies

: constantly criticized or attacked

See the full definition for embattled in the English Language Learners Dictionary

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