fought

fought — verb

1. Fought is the form of the verb 'fight' that you use for events in the past. It d

1.verbA2
Definition

Fought is the form of the verb 'fight' that you use for events in the past. It describes someone who tried to hurt, defeat, or resist another person, group, or problem at an earlier time.

Example

Darius fought bravely in the boxing match, but he lost in the final round.

simple past: subject + fought

Sade has fought for women's rights ever since she moved to the capital.

present perfect: has/have + fought (past participle)

Common collocations
  • fought against
  • fought for
  • fought with
  • fought bravely
  • fought hard

Grammar Patterns

fought + against/for/with

Usage Note

Fought is an irregular verb form and never adds -ed. It stays the same for all subjects (I fought, she fought, they fought). Use the present perfect (has/have fought) when a past fight connects to the present, and the past perfect (had fought) when one past event happened before another.

Common Mistakes

He fighted with his friend yesterday.
He fought with his friend yesterday.
'fight' is an irregular verb; the past tense is 'fought', not 'fighted'.
I have fight for my country.
I have fought for my country.
the past participle of 'fight' is 'fought', used after 'have/has/had'.
She was fighting in the war last year.' (when you mean a completed past event)
She fought in the war last year.
use the simple past 'fought' for finished actions, not 'fighting'.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

While all three words describe past conflict, they differ in scope and tone. Fought is the most general — it covers physical fights, arguments, and determined efforts. Struggled puts the focus on difficulty and strain, often without a clear opponent (e.g. 'She struggled with the heavy suitcase'). Battled suggests a long, organised conflict such as a military campaign or a health crisis (e.g. 'He battled cancer for two years'). Clashed emphasises a sudden, sharp disagreement (e.g. 'The two politicians clashed over tax policy'). For a single event that was both physical and prolonged, fought fits best.

struggledbattledclashed

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • fought to the death
  • fought back tears
  • fought tooth and nail

Prepositions

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

Fought comes from Old English 'feaht', the past tense of 'feohtan' (to fight). Related words exist in Old High German 'fehtan' and Old Norse 'fetta'. The irregular past pattern has been part of English for more than a thousand years.