melee
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melee1
/may"lay, may lay", mel"ay/, n.
1. a confused hand-to-hand fight or struggle among several people.
2. confusion; turmoil; jumble: the melee of Christmas shopping.
Also, mêlée.
[1640-50; < F mêlée. See MEDLEY]
melee2
/may"lay, may lay"/, n.
a group of diamonds, each weighing less than 0.25 carat.
[1910-15; orig. uncert.]
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also spelled mellay
ancient and medieval game, a predecessor of modern football (
football, gridiron) (
soccer), in which a round or oval object, usually the inflated bladder of an animal, was kicked, punched, carried, or driven toward a goal. Its origins are not known, but, according to one British tradition, the first ball used was the head of an enemy Dane. The games were played by large numbers of people with few rules and often became violent. By the 11th century in Britain, Shrove Tuesday, a day of festival before Lent, had become the day on which most of the mêlées took place; among the more notable were those at Chester, Derby, Corfe Castle, Alnwick, Bromford, Cross of Scone, and Midlothian. The term
mêlée is also used as part of the chivalric
tournament.
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Universalium.
2010.
:
Look at other dictionaries:
mêlée — mêlée … Dictionnaire des rimes
mêlée — [ mele ] n. f. • 1080; de mêler 1 ♦ Confusion de combattants au corps à corps. ⇒ bataille, cohue, combat. Mêlée confuse, générale, sanglante. « La mêlée en hurlant grandit comme une flamme » (Hugo). ♢ Lutte, conflit. Il a reçu un coup de poing… … Encyclopédie Universelle
Melee — Mêlée Lexique du rugby à XV Joueurs (avec leurs numeros traditionnels) Piliers (1 et 3) Talonneur (2) Deuxièmes lignes (4 et 5) Troisième ligne aile (6 et 7) Troisième ligne centre (8) Demi de mêlée (9) Demi d ouverture (10) Centres (12 et 13)… … Wikipédia en Français
Melee — Mêlée (fr.= das Getümmel, das Handgemenge, gemischt) ist: eine Taktik bzw. Situation in einer Seeschlacht, siehe Mêlée (Kriegführung) eine US amerikanische Pop Rock Band, siehe Mêlée (Band). eine Begriff für die Zusammenstellung von Formationen… … Deutsch Wikipedia
Mêlée — (fr.= das Getümmel, das Handgemenge, gemischt) ist: Mêlée (Kriegführung), eine Taktik bzw. Situation in einer Seeschlacht Mêlée (Band), eine US amerikanische Pop Rock Band Mêlée (Pétanque), die Zusammenstellung von Formationen in der Boule… … Deutsch Wikipedia
melee — or mêlée [mā′lā΄, mā lā′] n. [Fr mêlée < OFr meslee: see MEDLEY] 1. a noisy, confused fight or hand to hand struggle among a number of people 2. a confused conflict or mixture … English World dictionary
melee — (n.) 1640s, from Fr. mêlée, from O.Fr. meslee brawl, confused fight; mixture, blend (12c.), noun use of fem. pp. of mesler to mix, mingle (see MEDDLE (Cf. meddle)). See also MEDLEY (Cf. medley). Borrowed in Middle English as melle but lost and… … Etymology dictionary
melee — ► NOUN 1) a confused fight. 2) a disorderly mass. ORIGIN French mêlée; related to MEDLEY(Cf. ↑medley) … English terms dictionary
Mêlée — (franz.), Handgemenge, Wortstreit … Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon
melee — I index affray II index altercation, belligerency, bluster (commotion) III … Law dictionary
mêlée — I index brawl II index collision (dispute), commotion, confrontation (altercation) … Law dictionary
