grapple
The act of grapplingThe act of grappling. (uncountable)
Recorded US: K6ka, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
» We seem to keep grappling with the same old problem.
CK · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRTranslations
6 languagesBy meaning 2
By meaning 3
Examples
21 sentencesMeaning
5 senses(countable, uncountable)The act of grappling. (uncountable)
Ringen
хва́ткаxvátka
(countable, uncountable)A close hand-to-hand struggle.
Rauferei
the act of engaging in close hand-to-hand combat
A tool with claws or hooks which is used to catch or hold something.
A device consisting of iron claws, attached to the end of a rope, used for grasping and holding an enemy ship prior to boarding; a grappling iron.
Enterhaken
ко́шкаkóška
More meanings 2
A tool with claws or hooks which is used to catch or hold something.
A grapnel (“type of anchor”).
(uncountable)A combination of grape and apple flavors.
Origin
From Middle English *grapplen (“to seize, lay hold of”), from Old English *græpplian (“toFrom Middle English *grapplen (“to seize, lay hold of”), from Old English *græpplian (“to seize”) (compare Old English ġegræppian (“to seize”)), from Proto-Germanic *graipilōną, *grabbalōną (“to seize”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrebʰ- (“to take, seize, rake”), equivalent to grab + -le.
From Middle English *grapple, *graple, from Old French grappil (“a ship's grapple”) (compare Old French grappin (“hook”)), from Old French grape, grappe, crape (“hook”), of Germanic origin, from Frankish *krappō (“hook”), from Proto-Indo-European *grep- (“hook”), *gremb- (“crooked, uneven”), from Proto-Indo-European *ger- (“to turn, bend, twist”). See further at grape. Influenced in some senses by grapple (“seize”, verb) (see above).
Blend of grape + apple.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
plural: grapplesSynonyms
9 synonyms- a tool consisting of several hooks for grasping and holding; often thrown with a rope:grapnelgrapplergrappling hookgrappling iron
- a dredging bucket with hinges like the shell of a clam:clamshell
- the act of engaging in close hand-to-hand combat:wrestlewrestlinggrapplinghand-to-hand struggle
Word family
1 related wordsLessons for this word
1 lessons- A1Countable and uncountable nouns — Because it can be uncountable
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.