wrestle
English · Thesaurus
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wrestle
- /ˈɹɛsl̩/ UK
- /ˈɹɛs(ə)l/ US
Rhymes with -ɛsəl
Where it comes from
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”)
verb wrestles · wrestling · wrestled · wrestle
- 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; […]
- 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.
- To move or manipulate (something) using physical effort, usually with some difficulty or opposition. I couldn't wrestle the trunk down the hall.
- To engage in (a contest or struggle).
- To throw down (a calf or other livestock animal) for branding.
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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 […]
Similar: 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.
- 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.
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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].
Similar: 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; […]
- 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, […]
- 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 the
noun 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, cal
- 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 foreig
- The action of contending or struggling. War in Italy, universal spasm of wrestle there, being now the expectation of foolish mankind.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: grappling, grapple, writhe, squirm, wriggle, twist, worm, hand-to-hand struggle, tussle, combat, battle, fight, combating, struggle, confront, warsle
Translations
Every language
verb (transitive) to take part in (a wrestling bout or match)
| Português | combater |
|---|
verb (transitive) to engage in (a contest or struggle)
| Français | lutter |
|---|
verb (intransitive) 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
| Español | luchar |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 格闘する kakutō suru |
| 中文 | 搏鬥 /搏斗 bódòu, 摔跤 shuāijiāo, 摔角 shuāijiǎo |
| Português | lutar |
| Français | lutter |
| Deutsch | ringen |
| Ελληνικά | παλεύω palévo |
| Română | lupta |
| Русский | боро́ться borótʹsja, поборо́ться poborótʹsja |
| Tiếng Việt | vật |
| العربية | صَارَعَ ṣāraʕa |
noun 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
| Ελληνικά | πάλη páli |
|---|
Talk about this word "wrestle." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/wrestle. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. wrestle. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/wrestle "wrestle." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/wrestle.Cite this
@misc{wrestle_2026,
title = {wrestle},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/wrestle},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
