Meaning of battle In English

• 0 a fight between armed forces:

  • the Battle of the Somme

  • Her only brother was killed in battle (= while fighting).

• 1 an argument between two groups or against a situation that a group wants to change:

  • The aid agency continues the battle against ignorance and superstition.

  • The battle for women's rights still goes on.

• 2 a determined effort to achieve something in a difficult situation or to change a bad situation:

  • a long battle against cancer

• 3 to fight:

  • Police battled with residents in this part of the city for three days.

  • For years the two nations battled over territory.

  • He had to battle against prejudice to get a job.

  • Her parents battled for the right to be involved in the decision-making.

  • We battled with the elements to get the roof fixed.

• 4 a fight between armed forces, or an argument between two groups:

  • [ C ] the Battle of Cedar Creek

  • [ C ] a naval battle

  • [ C ] The battle between street gangs went on for years.

  • [ C ] They’re in a battle with their publisher over electronic rights.

  • [ C ] Doctors Without Borders is a group that wages battles against hunger and disease.

• 5 to fight, compete, or argue with another person or group:

  • [ I ] Congress is battling with the White House over funding.

  • [ T ] Long Horse died battling the Sioux in 1875.

  • [ I ] I thought we had the game under control, but they really battled back.

  • [ I ] The group was formed to battle prejudice.

• 6 a competition or argument between two or more people or organizations for power or control:

  • battle for/over sth They were locked in a battle for boardroom control.

  • battle against/with sb If you want to stay in the battle with competitors, you must constantly update your services.

  • battle between sb and sb the ongoing battle between the government and the unions

  • a fierce/bitter/long-running battle

  • a takeover/bidding/bid battle After suffering a drop in profits, the firm found itself in the middle of a takeover battle.

  • fight/lose/win a battle Has Europe lost the battle with America over online dominance?

  • be locked in/engaged in a battle (to do sth) The entire aviation industry is locked in a battle to produce the most efficient aircraft and engines.

• 7 a situation in which you try very hard to solve problems or succeed:

  • Many smaller firms are losing out in the battle for survival.

  • face/fight a battle The government faces a battle to regain the confidence of the financial markets.

  • an uphill battle Workers fought an uphill battle to prove their illnesses were caused by on-the-job toxic exposures.

  • battle to do sth the battle to develop new technologies

• 8 if two or more people or organizations battle, or battle each other, they compete with each other for power or control:

  • The company will now have to battle its resurgent competitor.

  • battle for/over sth Unions and management are currently battling over pay and staffing levels.

  • battle with/against sb/sth He battled with the board for many months before finally resigning.

  • Budget hotels are battling it out to bring US-style prices to Britain.

• 9 to try very hard to solve a problem or to succeed:

  • battle against sth She had to battle against prejudice to get the job.

  • Against a background of changing consumer habits, the big music groups are battling falling sales.

  • The retailer battled through a difficult spring and summer as sales fell by 2.5%.

  • battle to do sth Hydro Electric staff battled to restore power to up to 20,000 customers.