grapple 1 of 2

noun

ˈgra-pəl How to pronounce grapple (audio)
Definition of grapplenext
1
as in grip
the act or manner of holding was simply unable to break my opponent's viselike grapple and lost the wrestling match

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in struggle
an earnest effort for superiority or victory over another after a grapple with his conscience, he confessed to having an affair

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grapple

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to wrestle
to seize and attempt to unbalance one another for the purpose of achieving physical mastery two sumo wrestlers grappling like a pair of mammoth bears

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2
as in to grab
to take physical control or possession of (something) suddenly or forcibly a crane grappled the sunken boat and hoisted it above water

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of grapple
Noun
The script called for her character to throw a wine glass toward Isaac’s head, escalating things into a grapple with a golf club. — Seija Rankin, HollywoodReporter, 16 Apr. 2026 Aston Villa’s grapple with underlying metrics has been under the microscope all season. — Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026
Verb
The president celebrated the network’s gas prices just before the busy Fourth of July travel period as consumers were grappling with higher costs sparked by the war with Iran. — Brian Slodysko, Los Angeles Times, 20 July 2026 Like Locke, Heartstopper — in which her character grappled with body dysphoria and its impacts on her relationship with Tao Xu (William Gao) — was Finney’s first screen role ever. — Jessica Sager, PEOPLE, 18 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for grapple
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grapple
  1. grip
  2. struggle
  3. wrestle
  4. grab
  5. grasp
  6. battle
  7. catch
  8. hold
Noun
  • The Chavista regime swiftly reinvented itself as an American ally and secured its continued grip on the Venezuelan people and the country’s resources.
    — Rafael Osío Cabrices, Time, 20 July 2026
  • When employees feel seen rather than judged, the physiological grip of stress often eases.
    — Dr. Erika Rasure, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
Definition of grip
Noun
  • Or maybe England’s much maligned Bukayo Saka shaking off early struggles to finish with a hat trick?
    — Sergio Gonzalez, New York Times, 19 July 2026
  • The ongoing campaign, now in its second week, began with a struggle over control of the Strait of Hormuz.
    — Jon Gambrell, Chicago Tribune, 19 July 2026
Definition of struggle
Verb
  • But there’s a difference between narrating crime scenes at a remove and wrestling with the lingering morality of it all.
    — Dylan Green, Pitchfork, 17 July 2026
  • The 23-year-old Vancouver native leans into analog indie rock, using story songs and confessional lyrics to wrestle with relationships, future anxieties and the challenges of growing up in the public eye.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 14 July 2026
Definition of wrestle
Verb
  • Paredes was quickly on the scene, grabbing Garcia briefly by the throat and shoving him to the floor.
    — Adam Crafton, New York Times, 20 July 2026
  • If relaxing is more your speed, grab a glass of Chablis, settle into an Adirondack chair with a good book, and watch the sunlight dance across the lily pads.
    — Alexandra Emanuelli, Southern Living, 20 July 2026
Definition of grab
Noun
  • And as Dimon put it, give young people hope that the American Dream might be back in their grasp.
    — Preston Fore, Fortune, 16 July 2026
  • The collaboration builds on several NVIDIA resources already available through LeRobot, including an open-source physical AI dataset containing more than 350,000 real and simulated robot trajectories and 57 million grasp examples.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 9 July 2026
Definition of grasp
Noun
  • The war’s new weapon What began as a ground war has evolved into a battle increasingly fought from the air.
    — Nimi Princewill, CNN Money, 20 July 2026
  • The battle harks back to the January 2025 Eaton fire which spread toxic ash over swaths of Altadena and Pasadena.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 19 July 2026
Definition of battle
Verb
  • Evans avoided a charging Breakker with a backflip and tagged Dragon Lee, who was rolling until Paul interfered, allowing Breakker to catch Lee in midair with a powerslam.
    — Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 21 July 2026
  • But their journey to catch up with the Rivermen proves increasingly difficult, after one of their horses gets caught in a trap.
    — Matt Minton, Variety, 20 July 2026
Definition of catch
Noun
  • Indeed, that's enough time for Weyland-Yutani to colonize LV-426 and — just maybe — pay a visit to that mysterious spaceship with all those eggs in its cargo hold.
    — Richard Edwards, Space.com, 17 July 2026
  • Should Deadline’s $117 million domestic projection hold, the amount will closely align with pre-release projections from different industry trade publications, which forecast an opening for The Odyssey as high as $120 million.
    — Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 17 July 2026
Definition of hold

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Cite this Entry

“Grapple.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grapple. Accessed 23 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on grapple

Nglish: Translation of grapple for Spanish Speakers

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