Meaning and Origin
What does the name Duel mean? Keep reading to find the user submitted meanings, dictionary definitions, and more.
Origin and Meaning of Duel
User Submitted Origins
Arabic
50%
English
50%
International Interest
Also see international interest
Webster's Unabridged Dictionary
noun Du"el
A combat between two persons, fought with deadly weapons, by agreement. It usually arises from an injury done or an affront given by one to the other.
Etymology: It. duello, fr. L. duellum, orig., a contest between two, which passed into the common form bellum war, fr. duo two: cf. F. duel. See Bellicose Two, and cf. Duello
verb Du"el
To fight in single combat.
Other Dictionary Sources
- Any struggle between two skillful opponents (individuals or groups)
- A prearranged fight with deadly weapons by two people (accompanied by seconds) in order to settle a quarrel over a point of honor
- Fight a duel, as over one's honor or a woman ("In the 19th century, men often dueled over small matters")
Wiktionary
From Medieval Latin duellum (“fight between two men”), under influence from Latin duo, from Old Latin duellum (whence Latin bellum (“war”)), from Proto-Indo-European *dāu-, *dəu- *dū- (“to injure, destroy, burn”).
- Arranged, regular combat between two private persons, often over a matter of honor.
- Historically, the wager of battle (judicial combat)
- Any struggle between two contending persons, groups or ideas.
duel was also found in the following language(s): Catalan, Danish, Dutch, French, and Old French