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bodybuilding

American  
[bod-ee-bil-ding] / ˈbɒd iˌbɪl dɪŋ /
Or body-building,

noun

  1. the act or practice of exercising, lifting weights, etc., so as to develop the muscles of the body.


Etymology

Origin of bodybuilding

1900–05; from the verb phrase build ( up one's ) body; see -ing 1


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Piker kicked off his Wednesday show by talking about his custom-tailored jacket and his bodybuilding workouts.

From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026

And so now with bodybuilding, because my body has protected my soul my whole life, I’m honoring my body now.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026

In 2022, Baena competed on Season 31 of “Dancing With the Stars” and used his bodybuilding chops to pull off challenging lifts, basically bench-pressing his partner Alexis Warr mid-tango.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 9, 2026

His first visit in 1966 followed an invitation from a local bodybuilding judge.

From BBC ● Mar. 30, 2026

The logo was a cartoon of this giant bodybuilding bulldog wearing wraparound sunglasses and smoking a cigar and flexing his muscles.

From "Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood" by Trevor Noah

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