skirmish

Word family

Related topics: Military

skir·mish /ˈskɜːmɪʃ $ ˈskɜːr-/ noun [countableC]

1 PMWARa fight between small groups of soldiers, ships etc, especially one that happens away from the main part of a battle – used in news reports 小规模战斗，小冲突〔用于新闻报道〕

skirmish with/between/over

The young soldier was killed in a skirmish with government troops.

这名年轻士兵在和政府军的一次小冲突中被打死了。

► see thesaurus at war

2 ARGUEa short argument, especially between political or sports opponents 〔尤指政治或体育运动对手间的〕小争论，小冲突，口角

skirmish with/between/over

Bates was sent off after a skirmish with the referee.

贝茨和裁判发生冲突后被罚下场。

a budget skirmish between the president and Congress

总统和国会在预算问题上的冲突

—skirmish verb [intransitiveI]

They skirmished briefly with soldiers from Fort Benton.

他们和来自本顿堡的士兵发生了短暂的冲突。

Examples from the Corpus

skirmish• He talks of regrouping like a colonel after a skirmish at Yellow Tavern.• Government soldiers ran into a group of rebels, and a skirmish followed.• But what began in May 1998 as a skirmish over a remote stretch of border exposed a deep reservoir of bitterness.• They might well prevail in any skirmish with the local forces, but in the circumstances that would be of little profit.• The peace of Utrecht ended the war proper in 1713, but desultory skirmishes carried on until 1714.• Individual skirmishes flickered and stuttered in the distance.• Last night skirmishes were reported along the border.• Such are the preliminary skirmishes of all new foundations.• SAIC's previous skirmishes with investigators had attracted little attention.• On this last one, grunts had made light contact and reported several skirmishes where we had dropped them.• This was the first tiny skirmish in what was to be a major battle.

skirmish with/between/over• He had finished fourth in the opening race after a skirmish with Aussie Anthony Gobert.• But what began in May 1998 as a skirmish over a remote stretch of border exposed a deep reservoir of bitterness.• They might well prevail in any skirmish with the local forces, but in the circumstances that would be of little profit.• Such were the victories available to the Commandant in his skirmishes with his Political Officer.• Its skirmish with the regulators, however, is just one of the Board of Trade's problems these days.• There are traffic jams, skirmishes with the boys.• That afternoon saw slight skirmishes between the outposts of the opposing forces.• He did not hesitate to skirmish with the Confederates now, for his position was a strong one.