wrestle
Syllables: wrest·leUK/ˈɹɛsl̩//ˈɹɛs(ə)l/
wrestle verb: to take part in (a wrestling bout or match).
Verb
wrestle (third-person singular simple present wrestles, present participle wrestling, simple past and past participle wrestled)
- To take part in (a wrestling bout or match).
- And novv Ptolemais being to vvreſtle her laſt fall, ſtripped her ſelf of all cumberſome clothes: vvomen, children, aged perſons, vveak folks […] vvere ſent avvay; […]1639, Thomas Fuller, “Ptolemais Besieged, and Taken by Sultan Serapha”, in The Historie of the Holy Warre, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: […] Thomas Buck, one of the printers to the Universitie of...
- Hark thee, friend, […] wilt thou wrestle a fall with me?1816, Jedadiah Cleishbotham [pseudonym; Walter Scott], chapter IV, in Tales of My Landlord, […], volume II (Old Mortality), Edinburgh: […] [James Ballantyne and Co.] for William Blackwood, […]...
- Sometimes followed by down: to contend with or move (someone) into or out of a position by grappling; also, to overcome (someone) by grappling.
- My driver at the second station was a stout girl of twenty, strong enough to wrestle any man, but shy, modest, and gentle.1881, Paul B[elloni] Du Chaillu, chapter V, in The Land of the Midnight Sun: Summer and Winter Journeys through Sweden, Norway, Lapland, and Northern Finland. […], volume II, London: John Murray...
- Tunisia dug in to frustrate England in the second half but [Harry] Kane was the match-winner with a late header from Harry Maguire's flick, justice being done after referee Wilmar Roldan and the video assistant referee (VAR) had failed to spot him being wrestled to the ground twice in the penalty...2018 June 18, Phil McNulty, “Tunisia 1 – 2 England”, in BBC Sport, archived from the original on 21 Apr 2019
- To move or manipulate (something) using physical effort, usually with some difficulty or opposition.
- I couldn't wrestle the trunk down the hall.
- And, wrestling both his arms into a gown, / He paused and took a survey up and down.1821 August 8, [Lord Byron], Don Juan, Cantos III, IV, and V, London: […] Thomas Davison, […], →OCLC, canto V, stanza LXXVIII, page 174
- To engage in (a contest or struggle).
- To throw down (a calf or other livestock animal) for branding.
- To grapple or otherwise contend with an opponent in order to throw or force them to the ground, chiefly as a sport or in unarmed combat.
- Wreſtell nat with me for I wyll throwe the [thee] on thy backe […]1530 July 28 (Gregorian calendar), Iohan Palsgraue [i.e., John Palsgrave], “The Table of Verbes”, in Lesclarcissement de la langue francoyse⸝ […], [London]: […] [Richard Pynson] fynnysshed by Iohan...
- [Y]ee gaue their diligẽce [diligence] to lerne to fight, to wriſtle, to leape, to daunce, ⁊ to put at yͤ ſtone: […]1535 October 14 (Gregorian calendar), Myles Coverdale, transl., Biblia: The Byble, […] (Coverdale Bible), [Cologne or Marburg]: [Eucharius Cervicornus and Johannes Soter?], →OCLC, 2 Macchabees...
- Synonyms:
- wraxle
- Followed by with: to move or manipulate something using physical effort, usually with some difficulty or opposition.
- It fits Ioues ſonne / VVraſtle vvith Lyons, and to tugge vvith Beares, / Grapple vvith Dragons, and incounter VVhales.1613, Thomas Heywood, The Silver Age, […], London: […] Nicholas Okes, and are to be sold by Beniamin Lightfoote […], →OCLC, Act III, signature G, recto
- But 'tis a thing of saintlier nature, / Amidst her friends of pigmy stature, / To see the maid in youth's fair bloom, / A guardian sister's charge assume, / […] / With her in mimick war they wrestle; / Beneath her twisted robe they nestle; […]1821, Joanna Baillie, “The Legend of Lady Griseld Baillie”, in Metrical Legends of Exalted Characters, London: […] Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown, […], →OCLC, stanza XXXII, page 234
- To make one's way or move with some difficulty or effort.
- [S]o great a ſtorme of vvind and raine beat vpon vs that vvee not only loſt our vvay, but our ſelues, and at length vvraſtled to Geer, hauing firſt paſt through the Straits of Mozendram.1634, T[homas] H[erbert], “A Description of Spawhawn”, in A Relation of Some Yeares Trauaile, Begunne Anno 1626. into Afrique and the Greater Asia, […], London: […] William Stansby, and Jacob Bloome...
- [T]hy Lips, […] their tvvo-leav'd Door / So cloſe they ſhut, that […] not Breath it ſelfe, has povver to bore / Its vvay, but forced is to goe about, / And through the Noſes Sluces vvreſtle out.1648, Joseph Beaumont, “Canto XVII. The Mortification. Stanza 171.”, in Psyche: Or Loves Mysterie, […], London: […] John Dawson for George Boddington, […], →OCLC, page 327, column 2
- Followed by against or with: to contend, to struggle; to exert effort, to strive.
- Put on the arms of our god⸝ that ye maye ſtonde ſtedfaſt agaynſt the crafty aſſautes off the devyll. For we wreſtle not agaynſt fleſſhe and bloud: but agaynſt ruele⸝ agaynſt power⸝ and agaynſt worldy ruelars of the darcknes of this worlde⸝ agaynſt ſpretuall wickednes in hevenly thyngꝭ [thyngis].1526, [William Tyndale, transl.], The Newe Testamẽt […] (Tyndale Bible), [Worms, Germany: Peter Schöffer], →OCLC, Ephesians vj:[12], folio cclix, recto
- For kyng Henry [VI], diſcended of the houſe of Lancaſtre, claymyng the croune from kyng Henry the .iiii. his graund father, firſt author of this diuiſion: and Rychard duke of Yorke, as heyre to Lionell, the third ſonne to kyng Edward the third: wreſteled for the game, and ſtroue for the wager.a. 1548 (date written), Edward Hall, Richard Grafton, “[The Troubleous Season of Kyng Henry the Sixt.] The .XXXII. Yere.”, in The Vnion of the Two Noble and Illustre Famelies of Lancastre & Yorke...
- Synonyms:
- wraxle
- To contend verbally; to argue, to debate, to dispute.
- [B]ecause […] they were loath to wrestle with the people, or force them from dangerous customs, they came from that supine negligence, in tolerating prayer for the dead, to establish a doctrinal point of purgatory; […]1626 May 31 (date delivered; Gregorian calendar), John Donne, “Sermon LXXVII. Preached at St. Paul’s, May 21, 1626.”, in Henry Alford, editor, The Works of John Donne, D.D., […], volume III, London...
- To twist or wriggle; to writhe.
- But God (vvhen pleaſeth him) doth giue this ſtrength to man, / VVhereby he ſtandeth ſtout; euen like a mightie rocke / Amid the mounting vvaues vvhen Eole [Aeolus] doth vnlocke / Sterne Auſters ſtormie gate, making the vvaters vvraſtle / And ruſh vvith vvrathfull rage againſt the ſturdie caſtle, […]1608, [Odet de La Noue, Sieur de Téligny], translated by Iosuah Syluester, “The Profit of Imprisonment. A Paradox, […]”, in W. Salustius, Lord of Bartas, translated by Josuah Sylvester, Du Bartas His...
- He saw the glebe land guiltless of a furrow; / He saw the wild oats wrestle on the hill; / He saw the gopher working in his burrow; / He saw the squirrel scampering at his will;— […]1869 April, Bret Harte, “[Spanish Idyls and Legends.] Friar Pedro’s Ride.”, in Complete Poetical Works (The Works of Bret Harte; VIII), Argonaut edition, New York, N.Y.: P[eter] F[enelon] Collier &...
- Followed by with: to concern or occupy oneself closely, or deal with, a task, etc.
- Our hope is, that the yong Studient, vvho heretofore meeting at the firſt, and vvraſtling vvith as difficult termes and matter, as in many yeares after, vvas at the firſt diſcouraged (as many haue bin) may be reading theſe Inſtitutes, haue the difficultie and darkeneſſe both of the Matter and of...1628, Edw[ard] Coke, “Prœmium”, in The First Part of the Institutes of the Lawes of England. […], London: […] [Adam Islip] for the Societe of Stationers, →OCLC
Noun
wrestle (countable and uncountable, plural wrestles)
- A fight or struggle between people during which they grapple or otherwise contend with each other in order to throw or force their opponent to the ground, chiefly as a sport or in unarmed combat.
- [I]n a VVreſtle the Giant [Gogmagog] catching aloft, vvith a terrible hugg broke three of his Ribs: nevertheleſs Corineus enrag'd, heaving him up by main force, and on his Shoulders bearing him to the next high Rock, threvv him headlong all ſhatter'd into the Sea, and left his name on the Cliff...1670, John Milton, “The [First] Book”, in The History of Britain, that Part Especially now Call’d England. […], London: […] J[ohn] M[acock] for James Allestry, […] , →OCLC, pages 13–14
- Beyond the tilt-yard spread the larger space, / For the strong wrestle and the breathless race; […]1848, [Edward Bulwer-Lytton], “Book I”, in King Arthur. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, stanza LXXVI, page 28
- A situation in which people compete with each other; a contest, a struggle.
- Both parties in the wrestle professing earnest wishes of peace to us, what have we to do with it except answer earnestly, "Peace, yes certainly," and mind our affairs elsewhere. The British Nation has no concern with that indispensable sorrowful and shameful wrestle now going on everywhere in...1850 April 1, Thomas Carlyle, “No. III. Downing Street.”, in Latter-Day Pamphlets, London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, page 76
- The body politic, which, while it remained in repose, had presented a superficial appearance of health and vigour, was not under the necessity of straining every nerve in a wrestle for life or death, and was immediately found to be unequal to the exertion.1851, Thomas Babington Macaulay, chapter XI, in The History of England from the Accession of James the Second, volume III, London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, →OCLC, page 62
- The action of contending or struggling.
- War in Italy, universal spasm of wrestle there, being now the expectation of foolish mankind.1858, Thomas Carlyle, “Double-marriage Shall Be or Shall Not Be”, in History of Friedrich II. of Prussia, Called Frederick the Great, volume II, London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, book VI, page 118
wrestle meaning in Tamil, Urdu, Malayalam and Kannada
wrestle in Tamil
- மற்போர் புரி
wrestle in Urdu
- (transitive) to take part in (a wrestling bout or match)
- کشتی لڑنا kušti laṛnā
wrestle in Malayalam
- മല്ലിടുക, മല്പിടുത്തം നടത്തുക, ദീർഘയുദ്ധത്തിലേർപ്പെടുക, ഗുസ്തി പിടിക്കുക
wrestle in Kannada
- ಸೆಣಸಾಡು, ಕುಸ್ತಿಮಾಡು, ಮಲ್ಲಯುದ್ಧ ಮಾಡು, ಹೋರಾಡಿ ನೆಲಕ್ಕೆ ಕೆಡವು, ತೀವ್ರವಾಗಿ ಹೋರಾಡು, ಕಾಳಗ ನಡೆಸು
More languagesFewer languages
- wrestle in Tagalog
- buno, ibuno
- wrestle in Arabic
- صَارَعَ ṣāraʕa
- wrestle in Malay
- gusti, bergusti
- wrestle in Indonesian
- bergulat, gulat
- wrestle in Persian
- کشتی گرفتن košti gereftan
- wrestle in Thai
- ปล้ำ bplâm
- wrestle in Vietnamese
- vật
Examples of wrestle in a sentence
- She [a manatee] woolde oftentymes play and wreſtle vppon the banke with the kynges chamberlens: And eſpecially with a younge man whom the kynge fauoured well, beinge alſo accuſtomed to feede her.1555, Peter Martyr of Angleria [i.e., Peter Martyr d’Anghiera], “The Eyghte Booke of the Thirde Decade”, in Rycharde Eden [i.e., Richard...
- [W]e have prayed, and wrestled, and petitioned, for an offering to atone the sins of the congregation,, and, lo! the very head of the offence is delivered into our hand.1816, Jedadiah Cleishbotham [pseudonym; Walter Scott], chapter IV, in Tales of My Landlord, […], volume IV (Old Mortality), Edinburgh: […]...
- Come on, my enemy; we have yet to wrestle for our lives, but many hard and miserable hours must you endure, until that period shall arrive.1816 June – 1817 April/May (date written), [Mary Shelley], chapter VII, in Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. […], volume III...
- Thou [Jesus] wilt feel all, that Thou may'st pity all; / And rather wouldst Thou wrestle with strong pain, / Than overcloud thy soul, / So clear in agony.1827, [John Keble], “Tuesday before Easter”, in The Christian Year: Thoughts in Verse for the Sundays and Holydays throughout the Year...
Synonyms of wrestle
Forms of wrestle
| Verb | |
|---|---|
| third-person singular present | wrestles |
| present participle | wrestling |
| past participle | wrestled |
| past | wrestled |
| alternative form | rassle |
| alternative form | wrassle |
| alternative form | wrastle |
| alternative form | wrostle |
| second-person singular present (archaic) | wrestlest |
| second-person singular past (archaic) | wrestledst |
| third-person singular present (archaic) | wrestleth |
| Noun | |
| plural | wrestles |
Origin of wrestle
The verb is derived from Middle English wrestlen, wrastlen (“to engage in grappling combat or sport, struggle, wrestle; to twist and turn, squirm, wriggle, writhe; (figurative) to contend, grapple with, struggle”), from Old English wrǣstlian (“to wrestle”), a frequentative form of wrǣstan (“to twist, wrest”), from Proto-Germanic *wraistijaną (“to turn; to twist, wrest”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wreyt- (“to twist”). By surface analysis, wrest + -le (frequentative suffix). Probably related to wraxle (UK, dialectal, archaic). The noun is derived from the verb. cognates * Middle Dutch worstelen, wrastelen (“to wrestle”) (modern Dutch worstelen) * Middle Low German wrostelen (“to wrestle”) (German Low German frösseln, wrösseln) * Saterland Frisian wrosselje (“to contend, wrestle”) * West Frisian wrakselje (“to wrestle”)
Words formed from wrestle
Phrases with wrestle
Words that rhyme with wrestle
Questions about wrestle
- What does wrestle mean?
- Wrestle means to take part in (a wrestling bout or match).
- What is wrestle in Tamil?
- Wrestle in Tamil is மற்போர் புரி. See Wrestle meaning in Tamil.
- How do you use wrestle in a sentence?
- She [a manatee] woolde oftentymes play and wreſtle vppon the banke with the kynges chamberlens: And eſpecially with a younge man whom the kynge fauoured well, beinge alſo accuſtomed to feede her.
- What part of speech is wrestle?
- Wrestle can be a verb or a noun.
- How do you pronounce wrestle?
- Wrestle is pronounced /ˈɹɛsl̩/ (UK).
- What is the past tense of wrestle?
- The past tense of wrestle is wrestled.
Words near wrestle in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: wrestle (page history and authors); wrestle (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); wrestle (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); wrestle (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-wrestle.wav.
Cite this entry: “wrestle.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/wrestle. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.