embattled
adjective
em·bat·tled
| \ im-ˈba-tᵊld
\
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Definition of embattled
1a
: ready to fight : prepared to give battle
here once the embattled farmers stood— R. W. Emerson
b
: engaged in battle, conflict, or controversy
an embattled official accused of extortion
2a
: being a site of battle, conflict, or controversy
the embattled capital
b
: characterized by conflict or controversy
an embattled presidency
Examples of embattled in a Sentence
the embattled coach of a losing team
Recent Examples on the Web
Almost immediately, President Iván Duque reached out to Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó, whose nine-month campaign to unseat Maduro has stalled amid the refusal of Venezuela’s military to abandon the embattled leader. — Washington Post, "Colombian rebels’ rearming ups pressure for Maduro," 30 Aug. 2019 This was an important source of indignation that also referenced the embattled identity of the movement. — Alexander Sammon, The New Republic, "The Last of the Ayn Rand Acolytes," 14 Aug. 2019 So far the embattled leader refuses to step down, despite the recent arrests of former associates on corruption charges and the release of damaging comments made by the governor. — The Christian Science Monitor, "Turning around Puerto Rico’s woes," 24 July 2019 The embattled leader of the Pac-12 will address media on Wednesday in Southern California as part of the conference’s football media day event. — oregonlive.com, "Canzano: Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott prepares for football media day with a hoops weekend in Oregon," 21 July 2019 Lam’s bungling of the extradition bill has been criticized by local lawmakers but Beijing’s top official in Hong Kong this week said that the central government continues to support the embattled leader. — Eamon Barrett, Fortune, "Taking Credit From China – CEO Daily," 13 July 2019 Hong Kong’s chief executive Carrie Lam has asked to meet students in the city, as the embattled leader tries to fend off pressure from a month-long crisis over opposition to a proposed law that would allow extradition to mainland China. — Dylan Bouscher, The Mercury News, "Political Cartoons: World news weekly roundup," 5 July 2019 This work took me back to Iraq as an adviser first for the Kurds and later the Arab Sunnis, to Thailand for an embattled prime minister (removed by a coup d’etat on my watch), and throughout Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the Caucuses, and Africa. — Sam Patten, WIRED, "Kostya and Me: How Sam Patten Got Ensnared in Mueller’s Probe," 14 Aug. 2019 Their current embattled coach Clay Helton, after all, has accomplished similar feats at USC. — Los Angeles Times, "College football 2019: Is this the year LSU and Ed Orgeron really torture USC fans?," 14 Aug. 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'embattled.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for embattled
embattled
adjective
English Language Learners Definition of embattled
: engaged in battle or conflict : surrounded by enemies
: constantly criticized or attacked
See the full definition for embattled in the English Language Learners Dictionary