How to Say "fight" in Spanish
The most common Spanish word for “fight” is “pelea” — use 'pelea' for a physical or verbal confrontation between individuals or small groups, like an argument or a scuffle..
Examples
Los niños tuvieron una pelea por el juguete.
The children had a fight over the toy.
lucha
/LOO-cha//ˈlut͡ʃa/
Examples
En México, la lucha libre es muy popular.
In Mexico, freestyle wrestling is very popular.
Hubo una breve lucha entre los dos niños por el juguete.
There was a brief fight between the two children over the toy.
Feminine Noun Rule
Even though many nouns ending in -a are feminine, remember that lucha specifically takes the feminine article (la lucha).
batalla
/bah-TAH-yah//baˈtaʝa/
Examples
Su recuperación fue una larga batalla contra la enfermedad.
His recovery was a long struggle against the illness.
La batalla duró tres días y fue muy sangrienta.
The battle lasted three days and was very bloody.
Estudiamos las batallas más importantes de la historia.
We are studying the most important battles in history.
Cada día es una batalla para conseguir terminar el proyecto.
Every day is a fight to manage to finish the project.
Gender Rule
Remember that 'batalla' is a feminine word, so you must use the feminine articles: 'la batalla' or 'una batalla'.
Preposition Use
When talking about what you are fighting against, use the preposition 'contra': 'la batalla contra la pobreza' (the struggle against poverty).
Using 'pelea' for Abstract Fights
Mistake: “Usar 'una pelea contra el cáncer'”
Correction: Use 'una batalla contra el cáncer'. 'Pelea' is usually for physical or verbal arguments between people.
combate
/kom-BAH-teh//komˈbate/
Examples
El combate de boxeo terminó en el segundo asalto.
The boxing match ended in the second round.
La organización lidera el combate contra la pobreza infantil.
The organization leads the struggle against child poverty.
Hubo un breve combate entre las tropas enemigas.
There was a brief battle between the enemy troops.
Masculine Noun
Even though it ends in '-e', 'combate' is always a masculine noun, so you must use 'el' or 'un' before it.
guerra
/GEHR-rah//'gera/
Examples
Es una guerra constante contra la desinformación.
It's a constant struggle against misinformation.
Los dos hermanos tienen una guerra de voluntades.
The two brothers are having a war of wills.
El gobierno inició una guerra contra la pobreza.
The government started a war on poverty.
Pelea vs. Lucha
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