wrestle

Noun

• the act of engaging in close hand-to-hand combat
  • they had a fierce wrestle
    
  • we watched his grappling and wrestling with the bully
    

Verb

• engage in a wrestling match
  • The children wrestled in the garden
    

• to move in a twisting or contorted motion, (especially when struggling)
  • The prisoner writhed in discomfort
    
  • The child tried to wriggle free from his aunt's embrace
    

• engage in deep thought, consideration, or debate
  • I wrestled with this decision for years
    

• combat to overcome an opposing tendency or force
  • He wrestled all his life with his feeling of inferiority
    

Related words

• Synonyms: 
  wrestling , grapple , grappling , hand-to-hand struggle , writhe , wriggle , worm , squirm , twist