battle royal

[ bat-l roi-uhl ]

noun

, plural battle royals, battles royal.

1. a fight in which more than two combatants are engaged.
2. a cockfight in which three, five, or seven fowl are placed simultaneously in the fighting pit to eliminate each other by death or debilitating injury until only the victor remains in fighting condition.
3. Professional Wrestling. a type of wrestling match in which 15 to 30 wrestlers attempt to stay inside the ring while eliminating competitors by throwing them outside of the ropes until only one wrestler remains and is declared the winner.
4. a heated argument:

   After a while the discussion turned into a battle royal.

battle royal

noun

1. a fight, esp with fists or cudgels, involving more than two combatants; melee
2. a long violent argument

Word History and Origins

Origin of battle royal¹

First recorded in 1665–75 in spelling battail Royal

Example Sentences

He is among the wrestlers set to compete in a mashup of a battle royal and street fight at Battle Riot VI on YouTube.

From Seattle Times

"There's going to be a battle royal where everybody's trying to throw Andre the Giant out of the ring. And once that happens, if that happens, the campaign resets."

From BBC

We have seen Joel pull off some spectacular fights, and the history of TV and cinema tells us to expect a battle royal here.

From New York Times

But the better analogy and metaphor is professional wrestling, where Biden entered the battle royal and then threw all of the Republicans out of the ring over the top rope.

From Salon

They may still want to battle royal institutions and the media, but it may turn out that their real battle will be with ongoing relevancy.

From BBC