Meaning

noun a prearranged fight with deadly weapons by two people (accompanied by seconds) in order to settle a quarrel over a point of honor

noun any struggle between two skillful opponents (individuals or groups)

verb fight a duel, as over one's honor or a woman

originFrom Medieval Latin duellum (“fight between two men, duel”), itself from Old Latin duellum (“war, fight”), which survived in Classical Latin as a rare byform of bellum and was later reinterpreted as “duel” by unetymological association with duo (“two”). May have entered English through Middle French duel.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0