embattled

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   involved in, surrounded by, or persistently troubled by conflict or controversy

   The embattled minister faced demands to resign from all sides.

2. 2
   adj

   armed, arrayed, or prepared for battle

   The embattled defenders took their positions along the wall.

3. 3
   adj

   furnished with battlements or shaped like a battlement

   An embattled parapet crowned the medieval gatehouse.

The battle-related adjective comes from embattle ("to array for battle") plus -ed. Its architectural sense reflects a separate use of embattle meaning "to furnish with battlements."

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