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Melee Has French Roots
English has no shortage of words for confused and noisy fights, some (fray, brawl, scrap) more common than others (donnybrook, fracas). Melee tends to be encountered more often in written rather than spoken English, but it is far from obscure, and has seen increasing use especially in the context of video games featuring some form of hand-to-hand combat. Such games allow players to mix it up with all manner of rivals and baddies from the comfort and safety of their home, with mix being an especially apt word alongside melee: the latter comes from the French word mêlée, which in turn comes from the Old French verb mesler, meaning "to mix."
Synonyms
Examples of melee in a Sentence
Tom Gliatto, People.com, 31 Oct. 2024
The home run soared into the stands in Miami, and a melee ensued to grab the souvenir.
—Jonathan Lansner, Orange County Register, 16 Oct. 2024
Which means this Reality TV melee is going to trial on November 3 next year.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 11 July 2024
In June 2016, for instance, a Trump rally in downtown San Jose was the scene of a bloody melee of sucker punches, thrown bottles and burned MAGA hats once protesters showed up.
—Julia Prodis Sulek, The Mercury News, 3 Nov. 2024
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Dictionary Entries Near melee
Cite this Entry
“Melee.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/melee. Accessed 19 Nov. 2024.
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melee
noun
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