tussle

1 of 2

noun

tus·​sle ˈtə-səl 

1

: a physical contest or struggle : scuffle

2

: an intense argument, controversy, or struggle

tussle

2 of 2

verb

tussled; tussling ˈtə-s(ə-)liŋ 

intransitive verb

: to struggle roughly : scuffle

Synonyms of tussle

Noun

• clash
• skirmish
• battle
• fight
• scuffle
• struggle

Verb

• wrestle
• fight

Examples of tussle in a Sentence

Noun

The suspect was arrested after a tussle with a security guard.

a tussle for control of the company

The President is in for another tussle with Congress.

Verb

Two players tussled for the ball.

The residents of the neighborhood tussled with city hall for years about the broken parking meters.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Yet meanwhile, up in BoCo, Coach Prime is heading into a tussle with Kansas State (5-6) on Saturday with a 7-12 mark as a collegiate coach in games in which his son isn’t his starting signal-caller. —Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 26 Nov. 2025

Winslet’s Julia and Riseborough’s Molly are forced to confront their long-running feud while everyone tussles with their bubbling grief. —Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 26 Nov. 2025

Verb

As a longtime Boulder resident, Dan used to climb the trees that were adjacent to Folsom in the ’70s to get a glimpse of CU tussling with those Oklahoma and Nebraska teams of old. —Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 23 Nov. 2025

The courtroom tussling has some juice this week. —Noel Murray, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English (Scots) tussillen, frequentative of Middle English -tusen, -tousen to tousle — more at touse

First Known Use

Noun

1629, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1638, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for tussle

• bustle
• hustle
• muscle
• mussel
• russel
• rustle
• trussell
• mofussil

Kids Definition

tussle

1 of 2 verb

tus·​sle ˈtəs-əl 

tussled; tussling

ˈtəs-(ə-)liŋ

: scuffle sense 1

tussle

2 of 2 noun

1

: a physical contest or struggle

2

: a rough argument or a struggle against difficult odds