wrestled; wrestling
ˈre-sliŋ 
ˈra-;
ˈre-sᵊl-iŋ,
ˈra-
1
: to contend by grappling with and striving to trip or throw an opponent down or off balance
2
: to combat an opposing tendency or force
wrestling with his conscience
3
: to engage in deep thought, consideration, or debate
4
: to engage in or as if in a violent or determined struggle
wrestling with cumbersome luggage
1
a
: to engage in (a match, bout, or fall) in wrestling
b
: to wrestle with
wrestle an alligator
2
: to move, maneuver, or force with difficulty
Synonyms
Examples of wrestle in a Sentence
Verb
They'll be wrestling each other for the championship.
They'll be wrestling with each other for the championship.
Recent Examples on the Web
Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 6 Apr. 2024
Pfeifer was wrestling with the strain of working on the Pile (and later the Pit) to recover the remains of those who perished in the collapse of the towers.
—John Baldoni, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
So declining rates of young-adult coupling and of marrying – only one in two adults are currently married, a record low – act as a drag on birth rates as couples wrestle with life choices.
—Riley Robinson, The Christian Science Monitor, 27 Mar. 2024
Fare evasion has long been a source of contention for Metro, which has wrestled with declining revenue.
—Danny Nguyen, Washington Post, 23 Mar. 2024
As the city expanded, under both Spanish and Mexican rule, engineers wrestled with a vexing question: how to curb the often-catastrophic floods that regularly inundated the city, typically between May and October.
—Patrick J. McDonnell, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024
The White House late last year imposed a sweeping executive order to push for more guardrails as Congress wrestles with federal regulations.
—Emily Cochrane, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2024
Then, Robbie Williams left the band in 1995 to wrestle with personal problems and ultimately rebounded into solo fame, leaving the four other guys to forge much less successful careers on their own.
—Lisa Raphael, EW.com, 21 Mar. 2024
There’s no need to wrestle through each bag to find that go-to tee or pair of jeans — simply take a peak and leave all of the other cubes be.
—Clara McMahon, Peoplemag, 27 Mar. 2024
Verb
For most of the game, the Kansas City Royals and Chicago White Sox wrestled for an edge.
—Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 6 Apr. 2024
Pfeifer was wrestling with the strain of working on the Pile (and later the Pit) to recover the remains of those who perished in the collapse of the towers.
—John Baldoni, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
So declining rates of young-adult coupling and of marrying – only one in two adults are currently married, a record low – act as a drag on birth rates as couples wrestle with life choices.
—Riley Robinson, The Christian Science Monitor, 27 Mar. 2024
Fare evasion has long been a source of contention for Metro, which has wrestled with declining revenue.
—Danny Nguyen, Washington Post, 23 Mar. 2024
As the city expanded, under both Spanish and Mexican rule, engineers wrestled with a vexing question: how to curb the often-catastrophic floods that regularly inundated the city, typically between May and October.
—Patrick J. McDonnell, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024
The White House late last year imposed a sweeping executive order to push for more guardrails as Congress wrestles with federal regulations.
—Emily Cochrane, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2024
Then, Robbie Williams left the band in 1995 to wrestle with personal problems and ultimately rebounded into solo fame, leaving the four other guys to forge much less successful careers on their own.
—Lisa Raphael, EW.com, 21 Mar. 2024
There’s no need to wrestle through each bag to find that go-to tee or pair of jeans — simply take a peak and leave all of the other cubes be.
—Clara McMahon, Peoplemag, 27 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wrestle.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near wrestle
Cite this Entry
“Wrestle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wrestle. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share