infight

I1N1F4I1G2H4T1

verb

To fight with allies or other members of the same group.

Scrabble 14

Meanings

verbinfight (third-person singular simple present infights, present participle infighting, simple past and past participle infought)

present singular third person infights · participle present infighting · participle past infought · past infought

  1. intransitiveTo fight with allies or other members of the same group.

    And then each group began to infight on some pretext.

    1985, Alixa Naff, Becoming American: the early Arab immigrant experience, page 307
    2 more examples

    While Kennedy infought to trim outlays to match resources, critics claimed that the era of the big eleemosynaries had come to an end.

    1977 January 10, New York, volume 10, page 58

    Unfortunately what we have going on in this world against the new Israeli State, is just like what the Arabs do to their own, as they infight, among Muslims, and different nationalities, and sects, just as the many Christians do, and mostly did during the times of the Protestant revolution, and exodus and expulsion.

    2008, Anthony Townsend, Nassira Townsend, The Collapse of America: A Ruined State?, →ISBN, page 62
  2. boxingTo box while extremely close to an opponent

    Be prepared to slip and duck his jab to infight or to counter with a quick punch to the head or body.

    2004, Mark Hatmaker, Doug Werner, Boxing Mastery: Advanced Technique, Tactics, and Strategies from the Sweet Science, →ISBN, page 213
    3 more examples

    Even if you're giving up reach in order to infight, standing at the end of your opponent's punch (impact position) isn't the way to do it.

    2007, Alan Lachica, Doug Werner, Boxing's Ten Commandments, →ISBN, page 29

    Walker tried hard to close with his opponent, and infight, but by using both hands to good advantage Fus. Scott held his own.

    2003, Peter B. Kyne, Captain Scraggs; Or, the Green-Pea Pirates, →ISBN, page 252

    "In a minute," said the commodore faintly. "He's so good I hate to hurt him. But I'll infight him to a finish."

    1929, St. George's Gazette - Volume 47, page 247
nouninfight (plural infights)

plural infights

  1. An internal battle; a fight with allies or other members of the same group.

    The power struggle to establish Kim Il Sung as the sole leader in North Korea took almost a decade, entailing a series of bitter factional infights.

    2014, Young Whan Kihl, Hong Nack Kim, North Korea: The Politics of Regime Survival, →ISBN, page 71
    2 more examples

    In political terms, the subject of the play is the infight between ultraradical and moderate leftist factions, an infight which has haunted the European leftist movements since the days of the French Revolution.

    1982, Burghard Dedner, Carl Sternheim, page 92

    The German officer, however, made in his new function as Inspector of Army Motorization an enemy who proved equally ruthless on the battlefield as in the arena of bureaucratic infights—Heinz Guderian.

    2011, Jörg Muth, Command Culture: Officer Education in the U.S. Army and the German Armed Forces. 1901-1940, and the Consequences for World War II, →ISBN, page 143

Origin

  1. Old Englishinfiht
  2. Middle Englishinfighten“to attack”
  3. Englishinfight

Apparently a back-formation from infighting, perhaps continuing Middle English infighten (“to attack”), from Old English infiht, infeoht (“an attack made upon a person by another in the same house or between members of a household”), equivalent to in- + fight. Compare Middle English infiht (“an internal fight, a brawl within a household”).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Chinese Cantonese 窩裡鬥 /窝里斗
  • 窩裡鬥 /窝里斗 (wo¹ leoi⁵ dau³)fight with allies
Chinese Mandarin 窩裡鬥 /窝里斗
  • 窩裡鬥 /窝里斗 (wōlidòu)fight with allies
Cite this entry
APA

infight. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/infight

MLA

“infight.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/infight. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “infight,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/infight.

Source: infight on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.