Template:Short description {{#invoke:other uses|otheruses}} Template:Sister project A melee (Template:IPAc-en or Template:IPAc-en) is a confused hand-to-hand fight among several people. The English term melee originated circa 1648 from the French word {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} ({{#invoke:IPA|main}}), derived from the Old French mesler, from which medley and meddle were also derived.<ref name="Merriam">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The 1812 tabletop wargame Kriegsspiel, and H.G. Wells' 1913 Little Wars, referred to the hand-combat stage of the game as a melée, or {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}, respectively.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Wells">Template:Cite book</ref> The term was brought over to tabletop role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, and in turn to role-playing video games, to describe any close-combat encounter.<ref name="Tresca">Template:Cite book</ref>