boodle fight

noun

A large communal meal where food is placed directly on top of banana leaves across a long table where diners typically eat standing with their hands or plastic gloves, usually without cutlery.

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Meanings

nounboodle fight (plural boodle fights)

plural boodle fights

  1. PhilippinesgovernmentA large communal meal where food is placed directly on top of banana leaves across a long table where diners typically eat standing with their hands or plastic gloves, usually without cutlery.

Origin

From boodle (“candy and snacks”, U.S. Military West Point Academy slang) + fight, initially adopted from the U.S. Military Academy by the Philippine Military Academy, which spread across the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) before spreading to the populace.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

boodle fight. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/boodle%20fight

MLA

“boodle fight.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/boodle%20fight. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “boodle fight,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/boodle%20fight.

Source: boodle fight on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.