fighting

adjective

fight·​ing ˈfī-tiŋ How to pronounce fighting (audio)
1
: designed, intended, or trained to fight in combat
a fighting ship
a powerful fighting force
fighting men
2
: fit to fight
a boxer in fighting condition
3
: having or showing a readiness to fight : aggressive
What he does is break down the fighting spirit, not to mention the bodies, of his opponents.The New York Times
see also fighting chance, fighting word

Examples of fighting in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web But the computer model couldn’t distinguish fighting roosters from non-fighting roosters. Jeff Horwitz, WSJ, 17 Oct. 2021 Some had joined Ukrainian combat units as volunteers, while others have sought to assist the Ukrainian people in non-fighting capacities. Dan Lamothe, Washington Post, 4 Feb. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fighting.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of fighting was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near fighting

Cite this Entry

“Fighting.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fighting. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

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