(compounded of εν, all, and στρατος, I overcome), amongst the ancients, a kind of intermixed exercise, consisting of wrestling and boxing; but it differs in this, that as the athlete were not to seize the body, their hands were not armed with gauntlets, and gave less dangerous blows.

The pancratium was the third gymnastic exercise, and was not introduced till long after the others. The people who were engaged in these exercises were called pancratiastae; a name which was also given to such as did not confine themselves to one exercise, but succeeded in several different ones.