agonistic

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

agonistic
    adj 1: of or relating to the athletic contests held in ancient
           Greece
    2: striving to overcome in argument; "a dialectical and
       agonistic approach" [syn: {agonistic}, {agonistical},
       {combative}]
    3: struggling for effect; "agonistic poses" [syn: {agonistic},
       {strained}]

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Agonistic \Ag`o*nis"tic\, Agonistical \Ag`o*nis"tic*al\, a. [Gr.
   ?. See {Agonism}.]
   Pertaining to violent contests, bodily or mental; pertaining
   to athletic or polemic feats; athletic; combative; hence,
   strained; unnatural.
   [1913 Webster]

         As a scholar, he [Dr. Parr] was brilliant, but he
         consumed his power in agonistic displays. --De Quincey.
   [1913 Webster]