beleaguering

be·lea·guer

B0168200 (bĭ-lē′gər)tr.v. be·lea·guered, be·lea·guer·ing, be·lea·guers 1. To harass; beset: We are beleaguered by problems.2. To surround with troops; besiege: The enemy beleaguered the enclave.

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[Probably Dutch belegeren : be-, around (from Middle Dutch bie; see ambhi in Indo-European roots) + leger, camp; see legh- in Indo-European roots.]

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be·lea′guer·ment n.

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

beleaguering - the action of an armed force that surrounds a fortified place and isolates it while continuing to attackbesieging, military blockade, siegeblockade, encirclement - a war measure that isolates some area of importance to the enemyarmed forces, armed services, military, military machine, war machine - the military forces of a nation; "their military is the largest in the region"; "the military machine is the same one we faced in 1991 but now it is weaker"