Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A call to engage in a contest, fight, or competition.
  • noun An act or statement of defiance; a call to confrontation.
  • noun A demand for explanation or justification; a calling into question.
  • noun A sentry's call to an unknown party for proper identification.
  • noun A test of one's abilities or resources in a demanding but stimulating undertaking.
  • noun A claim that a vote is invalid or that a voter is unqualified.
  • noun A formal objection to the inclusion of a prospective juror in a jury.
  • noun A legal case testing the validity of an action taken, particularly by the government.
  • noun Immunology The induction or evaluation of an immune response in an organism by administration of a specific antigen to which it has been sensitized.
  • intransitive verb To call to engage in a contest, fight, or competition.
  • intransitive verb To invite with defiance; dare.
  • intransitive verb To confront or struggle with (something) as a test of one's abilities.
  • intransitive verb To take exception to; call into question; dispute.
  • intransitive verb To order to halt and be identified, as by a sentry.
  • intransitive verb To take formal objection to (a prospective juror).
  • intransitive verb To bring a legal case testing the validity of an action, particularly by the government.
  • intransitive verb To question the qualifications of (a voter) or the validity of (a vote).
  • intransitive verb To have due claim to; call for.
  • intransitive verb To summon to action, effort, or use; stimulate.
  • intransitive verb Immunology To induce or evaluate an immune response in (an organism) by administering a specific antigen to which it has been sensitized.
  • intransitive verb To make or give voice to a challenge.
  • intransitive verb To begin barking upon picking up the scent. Used of hunting dogs.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun Accusation; charge.
  • noun A claim or demand; pretension.
  • noun A summons or invitation to a duel; a calling upon one to engage in single combat, as for the vindication of the challenger's honor; a defiance.
  • noun Hence An invitation to a contest or trial of any kind: as, a challenge to a rubber at whist; a challenge to a public debate; “a challenge to controversy,”
  • noun The letter or message containing the summons to a combat or contest.
  • noun Milit., the act of a sentry in demanding the countersign from any one who approaches his post.
  • noun In hunting, the opening cry of hounds on first finding the scent of their game.
  • noun A calling in question; an exception taken, as to the tenability of a proposition, or a person's right to do something or to hold something.
  • noun In law, an objection to a juror; the claim of a party that a certain juror shall not sit in the cause.
  • noun In the East Indies, an exception taken by a ryot to the assessment of a neighbor's holding when it is less than that of his own poorer holding, accompanied by an offer to take over the neighbor's holding at a higher assessment, and a claim for the assessment on his own to be correspondingly reduced.
  • To accuse; call to answer; censure.
  • To lay claim to; demand as due or as a right: as, the Supreme Being challenges our reverence and homage.
  • To call, invite, or summon to single combat or duel.
  • To call to a contest; call into opposing activity; invite to a trial; defy: as, to challenge a man to prove what he asserts (implying defiance).
  • To take exception to; object to (a person or thing); call in question: as, to challenge the accuracy of a statement. Specifically
  • In law, to object or take exception to, as a juror or jury panel. See challenge, n., 9—7. Milit., to demand the countersign from: as, a sentry is bound to challenge every person appearing near his post. See challenge, n., 6.
  • In hunting, to whimper or cry when the scent of game is first discovered: said of a hound.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun An invitation to engage in a contest or controversy of any kind; a defiance; specifically, a summons to fight a duel; also, the letter or message conveying the summons.
  • noun The act of a sentry in halting any one who appears at his post, and demanding the countersign.
  • noun obsolete A claim or demand.
  • noun (Hunting) The opening and crying of hounds at first finding the scent of their game.
  • noun (Law) An exception to a juror or to a member of a court martial, coupled with a demand that he should be held incompetent to act; the claim of a party that a certain person or persons shall not sit in trial upon him or his cause.
  • noun United States An exception to a person as not legally qualified to vote. The challenge must be made when the ballot is offered.
  • noun (Law) an exception to the whole panel.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English chalenge, from Old French, from Latin calumnia, trickery, false accusation; see calumny. V., Middle English chalengen, from Old French chalangier, from Latin calumniārī, from calumnia.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Old French chalonge, chalenge, from Latin calumnia.

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Examples

  • Now we are in the process of restructuring ISI� The present leadership of ISI is very clear that this challenge is our challenge� if there are opinions that need to be expressed, they should not be done through the media.

    rediff.com 2009

  • Now we are in the process of restructuring ISI� The present leadership of ISI is very clear that this challenge is our challenge� if there are opinions that need to be expressed, they should not be done through the media.

    rediff.com 2009

  • I would make it a timed skill challenge, in which the players have to score [Number of players x 2] successes in three rounds (this is close enough to a complexity = [number of players] skill challenge*).

    EN World D&D / RPG News Rechan 2009

  • Arsène Wenger, the Arsenal manager, appeared to concede after the loss at City, which cast them 12 points off the top of the table, that a title challenge was beyond them and feels as if the battle for supremacy in London is the more realistic challenge.

    Arsenal's Wojciech Szczesny cannot imagine finishing below Tottenham 2011

  • Wenger insists that his own team's belief should be high because although their title challenge has faltered in recent weeks Arsenal have not been playing badly.

    Arsène Wenger 'optimistic' about keeping his young team together 2011

  • City beat Bayern with goals from David Silva in the 37th minute and Yaya Touré seven minutes after the break confirming the win, but Mancini must now lift his squad for the lesser European club competition while maintaining a title challenge in which they lead United by five points.

    Roberto Mancini says Manchester City will target Europa League glory 2011

  • The main challenge is finding and editing good stories.

    EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Nir Yaniv 2009

  • But for our title challenge to continue to be alive we will have to continue to be competent.

    André Villas-Boas says Chelsea back in hunt by beating Manchester City 2011

  • Sustaining a title challenge means coping with finishing-line fever and the approach of teams who set out to sicken in the way that Wolverhampton Wanderers did here.

    Adebayor goes off boil to leave Spurs short of steam against Wolves 2012

  • Steven Pienaar has said he does not regret leaving the title challenge at Tottenham Hotspur for a return "home" to Everton, but believes he faces a challenge to regain acceptance at Goodison Park having quit the club 13 months ago.

    Steven Pienaar eager to show Everton fans he deserves to be forgiven 2012

Comments

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  • Okay, Wordizens! A colleague of mine needs images of wolf regurgitation. (Don't ask why.) He wasn't able to find a single image online. I'm willing to bet someone in this community can find him one. Anyone??

    October 13, 2009

  • Just to be clear: we are looking for wolf barf -- NOT barfed wolf. Right?

    October 13, 2009

  • Will this serve?

    October 13, 2009

  • Isn't there a clothing line called Jack Wolfspit?

    October 13, 2009

  • While stunning, mollusque, that picture is... er... not exactly what we're seeking. But thanks! :) *sniggering*

    October 13, 2009