Definition

A melee is a noisy, confused, and often violent situation, involving a group of people. It can also refer to a hand-to-hand fight or a skirmish.

Pronunciation

US English

UK English


See Synonyms, Antonyms and Usage

Excerpts from News Articles

In a speech near the White House just before the Capitol attack, Trump repeated his baseless charge and urged a large gathering of his supporters to march to the Capitol and resist Congress’s certification of Biden’s victory. In the ensuing melee , Trump supporters attacked Capitol police, broke into the Capitol building, and vandalized and looted the interior. Three police officers and three rioters died as a result of the assault.


Three people were shot and killed and 11 others were wounded on June 4 on a busy Philadelphia street during a melee that began with a fistfight and was followed by random gunfire. Two men were later arrested in two of the killings, and other people have been arrested in connection with the melee .

Logo 2023-04-10 Associated Press

A visit to Grips today still reveals some of the intended continuity between scenes on stage and Berlin life off it, not least because spectators leaving through the theatre’s doors spill directly into Hansaplatz U-Bahn station and a melee of the musical’s stock characters.

Logo 2023-04-16 The Guardian

In the 30th minute, Shenzhen defender Jiang Zhipeng sent the ball into the box. Hujahmat's attempt in the melee was denied by the post but Yuan Mincheng followed up to put Shenzhen 1-0 ahead.

Logo 2023-04-17 China Daily

But a night of celebration turned to tragedy when guns were fired and four people lost their lives in the melee , among them the birthday girl’s beloved older brother Philstavious “Phil” Dowdell.

Logo 2023-04-18 The Independent

Three people died and 11 others were injured on 4 June on a Philadelphia busy block during a melee that began with a fistfight and was followed by random gunfire. Two men, 34-year-old Rashann Vereen and 18-year-old Quran Garner, are in custody for two of the deaths; other people have also been arrested in connection with the melee .

Logo 2023-04-19 The Independent

The show opens with a set piece in Paris, helpfully captioned 1307, in which some soldiers interrogate a group of women over the whereabouts of the Holy Grail. A melee ensues in which the women — who turn out to be Templars guarding it — fight to the death. The next scene (helpfully captioned “Present-Day.

Logo 2023-04-19 The Washington Post

The brief exchange between Biggs and Samsel, captured on widely circulated video of the earliest moments of the riot, has been the subject of intense scrutiny because of the role Samsel played in setting off the melee along with Biggs’ leadership role in the Proud Boys. It remains unclear what the two said to each other.

Logo 2023-04-20 Politico

Shown video of himself in the middle of a violent push against police on those steps, Meza described the melee as “officers who are being thanked for doing their job, and who are being sprayed by other officers.” Afterward prosecutors played a video Meza recorded soon after Jan. 6, calling the riot “glorious … the most patriotic act,” and Ashli Babbitt “our hero.” Meza acknowledged on the witness stand, “That’s how I feel.”

Logo 2023-04-20 The Washington Post

Prosecutors have charged Tarrio and four allies with acting as the “tip of the spear” of the mob that overran the Capitol, assembling a group of hundreds of Proud Boys to form a “fighting force” on Jan. 6. Those men surged across police barricades and stoked the crowd’s anger at decisive moments in the melee . One of them — Dominic Pezzola — ignited the breach of the Capitol itself when he smashed a Senate window with a riot shield.

Logo 2023-04-26 Politico

Enrollment had tapered off as students and families expressed concerns about the coronavirus and getting sick at school during the pandemic, Wormsley said. There were also concerns about physical safety — many students have been worried about “being involved in some type of melee or some type of violent experience” on long commutes riding public transportation to school, he added.

Logo 2023-05-06 The Washington Post