-athon

1. a suffix extracted from marathon, occurring as the final element in compounds which have the general sense “an event, as a sale or contest, drawn out to unusual length, often until a prearranged goal, as the contribution of a certain amount of money, is reached”: walkathon; readathon .

Example Sentences

Yes, the grotesque pamper-athon of excess that is the run-up to the Academy Awards is under way.

From The Daily Beast

Together they embarked upon a 10-year, life-changing, mystical globe trot-athon.

From The Daily Beast

When you see the Athon-Rajah coming, throw the first at him.

From Project Gutenberg

So she said to him one day, "Are you quite happy here, Athon-Rajah?"

From Project Gutenberg

There was an Athon last year who attacked a pehmet with forty men and one hundred and twenty rowers.

From Project Gutenberg

Oh no, it would be impossible for them to allow you to become an Athon or a Kohen.

From Project Gutenberg

Well, why couldn't I be made an Athon or a Kohen, and be exempted in that way?

From Project Gutenberg

Words That Use -athon

What does -athon mean?

The combining form –athon is used like a suffix meaning “a long event, typically with a particular goal.” It is occasionally used to form informal or slang terms.

The form –athon is derived from the ending of the word marathon, meaning “a foot race over a course measuring 26.2 miles.” The name is an allusion to the ancient Greek legend of Pheidippides, who ran from Marathon to Athens to carry news of the Greek victory over the Persians in 490 BCE.

What are variants of –athon?

When combined with words or word elements that end with a vowel, the form –athon becomes –thon, as in telethon. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use article on –thon.

Examples of -athon

One example of a term that features the form –athon is talkathon, “an unusually long speech or discussion, especially on a matter of public interest, as a Congressional filibuster or a televised question-and-answer session with a political candidate.”

The first part of the word talkathon, talk–, means “talk.” As we have seen, the form –athon means “a long event.” Talkathon literally means “a long talking event.”

What are some words that use the combining form –athon?

• bikeathon
• drunkathon
• hackathon
• shopathon
• walkathon

What are some other forms that –athon may be commonly confused with?

• -athlon
• -ation

Break it down!

Given the meaning of –athon, what kind of an event is a walkathon?