Pronunciation: - ' n ə -k ə l
Variant: also bare-knuck · led \ -k ə ld \ or bare-knuck · les \ -k ə lz \
Function: adjective or adverb
Date: 1903
1 : not using boxing gloves <champion bare-knuckle prizefighter of England ― Dennis Craig> <when men fought bare-knuckle >
2 : having a fierce unrelenting character < bare-knuckle politics>