verb
definition
To engage in a minor battle or dispute
noun
definition
A brief battle; a skirmish.
Examples of skirmishing in a Sentence
According to the dealer I cornered, there's been some skirmishing between those loyal to you and those who want to install someone else.
In 1186 he attacked a caravan in which the sister of Saladin was travelling, thus violating a four years' truce, which, after some two years' skirmishing, Saladin and Raymund of Tripoli had made in the previous year owing to the general prevalence of famine.
During the 17th there was only indecisive skirmishing, Schwarzenberg waiting for his reinforcements coming up by the Dresden road, Blucher for Bernadotte to come in on his left, and by some extraordinary oversight Giulay was brought closer in to the Austrian centre, thus opening for the French their line of retreat towards Erfurt, and no imformation of this movement appears to have been conveyed to Blucher.
Skirmishing with De Wet in the first stages of their ride, the cavalry brigades crossed the Modder at Klip Drift on the 13th.
Hitherto there had only been skirmishing on a large scale on the side of Hai-cheng.
Skirmishing constantly with the Confederates under Kirby Smith and Taylor, the Federals eventually on the 8th and 9th of April suffered serious reverses at Sabine Cross Roads and Pleasant Hill.
Six thousand men fell in one hour's fighting, and the total losses on this field, where skirmishing went on for many days, were 13,000.
Operations began early in May 1864, and five days of manoeuvring and skirmishing about Resaca and Rocky Face ended in Johnston's retirement to Resaca.
Hitherto neither leader had offered a weak spot to his opponent, though the constant skirmishing had caused a loss of 9000 men to Sherman and about two-thirds of that number to the Confederates.
As Ignatius said, the ancient monastic communities were the infantry of the Church, whose duty was to stand firmly in one place on the battlefield; the Jesuits were to be her light horse, capable of going anywhere at a moment's notice, but especially apt and designed for scouting and skirmishing.
An insurrection, headed by General Eloy Alfaro, followed; and after desultory skirmishing extending over a period of nearly a year the government forces were finally routed, President Cordero abandoning his office and escaping from the country.
In the course of the next six months there was much desultory skirmishing between the tribes and the British troops, who defeated various attempts to dislodge them from the positions that had been taken up; but the sphere of British military operations was not materially extended.
But in October 732 their march was checked between Tours and Poitiers by Charles Martel and after some days of skirmishing a fierce but indecisive battle was fought.
Antony's heavy battleships endeavoured to close and crush the enemy with their artillery; Octavian's light and mobile craft made skilful use of skirmishing tactics.
The latter maintained for many days an absolutely passive defence, and could not be tempted to fight; Richard and his knights made occasional charges, but quickly withdrew, and on the 7th of September this irregular skirmishing, in which the crusaders had scarcely suffered at all, culminated in the battle of Arsuf.
Laurens was designated with the vicomte de Noailles to arrange the terms of the surrender, which virtually ended the war, although desultory skirmishing, especially in the South, attended the months of delay before peace was formally concluded.
In 1830 he entered the lists as a party writer, defending in a series of letters to the National, a Parisian journal, the United States against a string of charges brought against them by the Revue Britannique; and for the rest of his life he continued skirmishing in print, sometimes for the national interest, sometimes for that of the individual, and not infrequently for both at once.
The great numerical superiority of the Federals enabled Sherman to press back the Confederates without a pitched battle, but the severity of the skirmishing may be judged from the casualties of the two armies (Sherman's about 26,000 men, Johnston's over io,000), and the obstinate steadiness of Johnston by the fact that his opponent hardly progressed more than one mile a day.
That same night, Rostov was with a platoon on skirmishing duty in front of Bagration's detachment.
The Cardigan men had tried a rush, in skirmishing order, at the pit, simply to be swept out of existence.
The peace proved unstable, and there was desultory skirmishing in 1161.