compete

[kuhm-peet]

verb (used without object)

competed, competing 

1. to strive to outdo another for acknowledgment, a prize, supremacy, profit, etc.; engage in a contest; vie: to compete in business.

   to compete in a race;

   to compete in business.

   Synonyms: struggle

compete

/ kəmˈpiːt /

verb

1. to contend (against) for profit, an award, athletic supremacy, etc; engage in a contest (with)

Other Word Forms

• competer noun
• competingly adverb
• noncompeting adjective
• outcompete verb (used with object)

Word History and Origins

Origin of compete¹

First recorded in 1610–20; from Latin competere “to meet, coincide, be fitting, suffice” ( Late Latin: “to seek, ask for”), equivalent to com- “with, together” + petere “to seek”; com-. The Late Latin and English senses were influenced by competitor

Word History and Origins

Origin of compete¹

C17: from Late Latin competere to strive together, from Latin: to meet, come together, agree, from com- together + petere to seek

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. cannot/can't compete with, to not be, by a great degree, as good or capable as (someone or something else).

   These roses are lovely, but they can’t compete with the ones we grew back home in Ecuador.

Synonym Study

Compete, contend, contest mean to strive to outdo or excel. Compete implies having a sense of rivalry and of striving to do one's best as well as to outdo another: to compete for a prize. Contend suggests opposition or disputing as well as rivalry: to contend with an opponent, against obstacles. Contest suggests struggling to gain or hold something, as well as contending or disputing: to contest a position or ground ( in battle ); to contest a decision.

Example Sentences

This battle for Scotland's flag is also a battle about what it means to be a patriot in modern Scotland - a battle of competing nationalisms.

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Though the batting was a struggle, England proved once again that they have one of the most well-rounded bowling attacks to compete in these conditions.

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"There are areas where we compete and it's in those areas we have to come to an agreement that works," Carney said.

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The commission has come under pressure from some member states and their steel industries, which have been struggling to compete with cheap imports from countries like China and Turkey.

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As Dr Elizabeth Duncan says: "Unfortunately, they do compete with and can outcompete some native ladybird species, but they like to overwinter in different environments - harlequins in our homes and seven-spots in leaf litter."

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Related Words

• battle 
• challenge 
• clash 
• contend 
• contest 
• face 
• fight 
• play 
• spar 
• try 
• vie 
• wrestle