Duel Meaning
/ˈˈd͡ʒuːəl/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounArranged, regular combat between two private persons, often over a matter of honor.
nounHistorically, the wager of battle (judicial combat).
Sentence Examples
Kyouichi Saionji, who he supposed would win the duel, has lost.
"Dad, this a real sword?" "Of course, it is a duel after all."
CEFR Practice Quiz
The two knights agreed to a formal ____ with swords at dawn.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Kyouichi Saionji, who he supposed would win the ____, has lost.
Word Origin & History
From Medieval Latin duellum (“fight between two men, duel”), itself from Old Latin duellum (“war, fight”), which survived in Classical Latin as a rare byform of bellum and was later reinterpreted as “duel” by unetymological association with duo (“two”). May have entered English through Middle French duel.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"I have often thought since, how different my fate might have been, had I not fallen in love with Nora at that early age; and had I not flung the wine in Quin’s face, and so brought on the duel."
— 1844 January–December, W[illiam] M[akepeace] Thackeray, “In Which I Show Myself to Be a Man of Spirit”, in “The Memoirs of Barry Lyndon, Esq. [The Luck of Barry Lyndon.]”, in Miscellanies: Prose and Verse, volume III, London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1856, →OCLC, page 36:
"Of course, not all the Railway Members were men of such talent. One member was "chiefly eminent as a whist player," and another was known for his duel with a fellow M.P. fought at Wormwood Scrubs in 1840."
— 1960 March 26, N. Caplan, “The Railway Member of Parliament”, in Railway Magazine, page 209:
"It has been 200 years, minus a few days, since Vice President Aaron Burr fatally shot Alexander Hamilton in a duel here. Weehawken and the duel have been tied together in an often-uncomfortable knot ever since."
— 2004 July 5, Jason George, “A Duel Evokes Dueling Emotions Over a Unique Place in History”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 05 Nov 2018:
"After Rep. William Graves of Kentucky killed Rep. John Cilley of Maine in a duel in 1838, Congress imposed a prohibition on pistol duels in the District of Columbia."
— 2017 June 14, Julian Zelizer, “The challenge of protecting members of Congress”, in CNN, archived from the original on 14 Jun 2017:
"But it leaves them with a few destroyers, the American destroyer force is falling back, and then you have the two cruiser lines with their respective battleships coming in for the big duel."
— 2019 March 6, Drachinifel, 25:33 from the start, in The Battle of Samar (Alternate History) - Bring on the Battleships!, archived from the original on 20 Jul 2022:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The two knights agreed to a formal ____ with swords at dawn.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Kyouichi Saionji, who he supposed would win the ____, has lost.