Did you know?
Melee Has French Roots
English has no shortage of words for confused and noisy fights, some (fray, brawl, scrap) more common than others (donnybrook, fracas). Melee tends to be encountered more often in written rather than spoken English, but it is far from obscure, and has seen increasing use especially in the context of video games featuring some form of hand-to-hand combat. Such games allow players to mix it up with all manner of rivals and baddies from the comfort and safety of their home, with mix being an especially apt word alongside melee: the latter comes from the French word mêlée, which in turn comes from the Old French verb mesler, meaning "to mix."
Examples of melee in a Sentence
Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 12 Mar. 2026
With two cameramen capturing the melee, Ropp had a mix of his cast, crew and whoever the hell else was around join in the game.
—Mia Galuppo, HollywoodReporter, 12 Mar. 2026
Dominic Miller, who pleaded guilty to a weapons charge as part of a plea deal, was among at least six people to start shooting in the melee that sent players, city officials and hundreds of fans scrambling for cover, according to court records.
—ABC News, 9 Mar. 2026
Rasmus Dahlin in the head and neck during a bizarre second-period melee in the Sabres’ 5-1 win Thursday at PPG Paints Arena.
—Josh Yohe, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for melee
Cite this Entry
“Melee.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/melee. Accessed 22 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
melee
noun
