battle royal

noun

-rȯi-ˈal 

variants or battle royale

plural battles royal or battle royals or battles royale or battle royales

1

a

: a fight participated in by more than two combatants

especially : one in which the last fighter in the ring or the last fighter standing is declared the winner

b

: a violent struggle

2

: a heated dispute

Synonyms

• altercation
• argle-bargle [chiefly British]
• argument
• argy-bargy [chiefly British]
• bicker
• brawl
• contretemps
• controversy
• cross fire
• disagreement
• dispute
• donnybrook
• falling-out
• fight
• hassle
• imbroglio
• kickup
• misunderstanding
• quarrel
• rhubarb
• row
• scrap
• set-to
• spat
• squabble
• tiff
• wrangle

Examples of battle royal in a Sentence

the sisters had a battle royal over whose turn it was to use the family car

Recent Examples on the Web

Then, to complete the drama, the big grizzly had caught the two intruders and slaughtered them in a battle royal. —Tom Stacer, Outdoor Life, 20 Feb. 2025

After all, who doesn't love a giant in a battle royal? —Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 25 Jan. 2025

At the time of the match, DDP had not wrestled in a decade, aside from a few appearances in WWE battle royals that required minimal physicality. —Nathan Kamal, Newsweek, 25 Jan. 2025

Meanwhile, Hendry virally appeared in a battle royal on NXT and also challenged Ethan Page for the NXT Championship at No Mercy. —Jeremy Hanna, Newsweek, 16 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1671, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for battle royal

• pennyroyal
• disloyal
• loyal