celebration
Americannoun
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the act of celebrating.
We want to do something special in celebration of Amy’s great new job.
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a party or other festive event for celebrating something.
Don’t you think the birthday celebrations for preschoolers in this neighborhood are a bit over the top?
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of celebration
First recorded in 1480–90; from Latin celebrātiōn- (stem of celebrātiō ) “large gathering, widespread use, celebration (of a festival)”; see celebrate, -ion
Explanation
A celebration is a joyful diversion. Your math class might have a celebration when you learn that the midterm has been postponed for a week. A celebration can be a festive party commemorating some joyous occasion, like your grandparents' fiftieth anniversary celebration or your brother's birthday celebration. It can also be a less formal marking of a happy event, like the arrival of your new puppy. Another meaning of celebration is a religious ceremony, such as communion or a bar mitzvah.
Vocabulary lists containing celebration
Party Parlance for Mardi Gras
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Passover Vocabulary
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List 4
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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:
She said new documents indicate that damage to the landmark was "the result of flawed installation by the contractor... and the rush to complete the project prior to events associated with the America 250 celebration."
From Barron's ● Aug. 1, 2026
Amsterdam came alive with music, colour and celebration on Saturday, as thousands of people flocked to the canals to watch the city's annual Pride boat parade.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
For six weeks, soccer made the U.S. the center of worldwide celebration.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
He told Agency France-Presse that he was still shocked but vowed to be back for next year's pride celebration.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
I imagine her sitting in an old English house, sipping hot chocolate while snow falls outside, drawing a tiny menorah on a notepad, a Hanukkah celebration for her alone.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
Founders appear at centenary celebrations and sign pledges to “common prosperity.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
The celebrations have gone far beyond the county in the west of Ireland, which is home to just 137,000 people but boasts some very famous exports.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
More than 2,200 police officers had been deployed for this year’s Pride celebrations before Saturday night’s attack.
From Salon ● Jul. 26, 2026
An eyewitness near the main Pride stage at Brandenburg Gate told AFP that celebrations abruptly ended when police instructed people to leave.
From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026
When Bobby returned to New York, both the Marshall and Manhattan chess clubs conducted victory celebrations, and he was lauded as America’s new chess hero.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
