Jump To:

• marathon
  marathon

  noun

  a footrace or wheelchair race over a course measuring 26 miles 385 yards (42 kilometers 195 meters).
• Marathon
  Marathon

  noun

  a plain in SE Greece, in Attica: the Athenians defeated the Persians here 490 b.c.

marathon

¹ American  

[mar-uh-thon, -thuhn] / ˈmær əˌθɒn, -θən /

noun

1. a footrace or wheelchair race over a course measuring 26 miles 385 yards (42 kilometers 195 meters).

2. any long-distance race.

3. any contest, event, or the like, of great, or greater than normal, length or duration or requiring exceptional endurance.

   a dance marathon;

   a sales marathon.

---

Marathon ² American  

[mar-uh-thon] / ˈmær əˌθɒn /

noun

1. a plain in SE Greece, in Attica: the Athenians defeated the Persians here 490 b.c.

2. an ancient village that is near this plain.

3. Classical Mythology. a son of Epopeus and the father of Corinthus.

---

marathon ¹ British  

/ ˈmærəθən /

noun

1. a race on foot of 26 miles 385 yards (42.195 kilometres): an event in the modern Olympics

2. 1. any long or arduous task, assignment, etc

   2. ( as modifier )

      a marathon effort

---

Marathon ² British  

/ ˈmærəθən /

noun

1. a plain in Attica northeast of Athens: site of a victory of the Athenians and Plataeans over the Persians (490 _bc )

---

Usage

What does marathon mean? A marathon is a 26. 22-mile (42. 2-kilometer) long-distance race. Technically, the exact length of a marathon is 26 miles 385 yards (42 kilometers 195 meters). But the length is mostly commonly stated as 26. 2 miles. Marathons are most commonly running races, but some people complete marathons in wheelchairs. Marathon courses are typically on roadways, often those in or around a city. The marathon is an event in the Summer Olympic Games. Major marathons are also held internationally in many major cities. Prominent events include the Boston Marathon, the New York Marathon, and the London Marathon. A marathon runner can be called a marathoner. A running race of 13. 1 miles is known as a half-marathon. The term ultramarathon refers to a race of 50 miles or more. The word marathon is also often used in a more general way to refer to a contest or event that takes a particularly long time and requires endurance, such as a dance marathon. A movie marathon involves several movies played consecutively. Sometimes, the word is used in a more figurative way to refer to a task or undertaking that takes a long time and requires patience, as in Be patient—learning karate is a marathon, not a sprint. Example: I’ve always wanted to run a marathon, so I started training today.

Etymology

Origin of marathon

First recorded in 1895–1900; allusion to Pheidippides' 26-mile (42-kilometer) run from Marathon to Athens to carry news of the Greek victory over the Persians in 490 b.c.

Explanation

A marathon is a very long race that runners compete in — a 26 mile, 385 yard race, to be exact. When you're training for a marathon, you'll gradually increase the distance of your daily runs. The word marathon has ancient legendary roots: it comes from a long journey taken on foot by the Greek messenger Pheidippides, from the battlefields of Marathon to Athens in 490 BCE. As the story goes, he ran without stopping, announced to the citizens of Athens, "We have won," and promptly died. The marathon was one of the original Olympics events, and its difficulty inspired the figurative meaning of "any difficult undertaking."

Example Sentences

COP31 is being organised and chaired by Turkey but Bowen is steering the marathon talks under an unusual arrangement struck after Canberra and Ankara competed to host the world's most important climate summit.

From Barron's • Jun. 8, 2026

His involvement was met with some consternation from the running community — how could this man with no racing experience arrange a successful marathon when four prior attempts had failed?

From Los Angeles Times • May 30, 2026

In this case, that meant pulling from both algebraic number theory and discrete geometry, which have about as much in common as the marathon and pole vault.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 30, 2026

Jordan and Cian Adams, from Redditch, Worcestershire, were roared on by hundreds of supporters in central Dublin as they completed their final marathon.

From BBC • May 28, 2026

Louie had to move so slowly that he couldn’t lose the marathon walker creeping along beside him.

From "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand