dogfight
UK /ˈdɒɡ.faɪt/ · US [ˈdɔɡ.fʌɪt] noun, verb
Forms dogfights dogfighting dogfought
- noun (aviation, military) A twisting turning battle between two or more military aircraft, especially between fighters. “The two bi-planes swirled around each other like angry wasps in a violent dogfight.”
- noun A fight between dogs, especially as part of the blood sport of dogfighting.
- verb To engage in a battle between fighter planes. “Missiles exhausted, the pilot was forced to close and dogfight with his opponent.”
Synonyms
Etymology
From dog + fight.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 — from the Wiktionary entry “dogfight”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details