entry
battle
/ˈbætəl/A fight or struggle between opposing forces
From Latin, probably from a Celtic or Germanic source batt- (to strike).
from Latin battuō (“to strike, hit, beat, fight”), of uncertain origin. Possibly
from Late Latin battualia "exercise of soldiers and gladiators in fighting and fencing,"
from Old French bataille "battle, single combat," also "inner turmoil, harsh circumstances; army, body of soldiers,"
+1 more sourceWord Ancestry
from Latin battuō (“to strike, hit, beat, fight”), of uncertain origin. Possibly
from Late Latin battualia "exercise of soldiers and gladiators in fighting and fencing,"
from Old French bataille "battle, single combat," also "inner turmoil, harsh circumstances; army, body of soldiers,"
+1 more sourcePicture Roman soldiers and gladiators drilling with wooden weapons: their organized exercises were called battuālia, from Latin battuere, “to strike.” French inherited the word as bataille, and after the Norman Conquest it crossed into Middle English as batel and batayle around 1300. The word’s ultimate ancestry is disputed: one proposal connects it with a root meaning “to stab, dig,” while another suggests a root meaning “to hit or beat.” Along the way, battle displaced native Old English words such as ġefeoht, beado, camp, and wīg—an invading French word doing linguistic battle with several English ones. Remember it as a word that began with a blow in a training yard and ended up naming everything from Waterloo to an argument over the remote control.
The Story
Picture Roman soldiers and gladiators drilling with wooden weapons: their organized exercises were called battuālia, from Latin battuere, “to strike.” French inherited the word as bataille, and after the Norman Conquest it crossed into Middle English as batel and batayle around 1300. The word’s ultimate ancestry is disputed: one proposal connects it with a root meaning “to stab, dig,” while another suggests a root meaning “to hit or beat.” Along the way, battle displaced native Old English words such as ġefeoht, beado, camp, and wīg—an invading French word doing linguistic battle with several English ones. Remember it as a word that began with a blow in a training yard and ended up naming everything from Waterloo to an argument over the remote control.
Modern Usage
In U.S. Army slang, a trusted teammate or “battle buddy.”
Notable References
- Urban Dictionary entry for “battle buddy”
Kin & Kindred
From 'batt-'·to strike, hit, beat, fight
Derived Terms
English words from this root
Sources
Free Dictionary
Urban Dictionary
Wikipedia