athlete

American  

[ath-leet] / ˈæθ lit /

noun

athletes plural

1. a person trained or gifted in exercises or contests involving physical agility, stamina, or strength; a participant in a sport, exercise, or game requiring physical skill.

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athlete British  

/ ˈæθliːt /

noun

1. a person trained to compete in sports or exercises involving physical strength, speed, or endurance

2. a person who has a natural aptitude for physical activities

3. a competitor in track and field events

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Pronunciation

Athlete, athletic, and athletics, normally pronounced , , and , are heard frequently with an epenthetic schwa, an intrusive unstressed vowel inserted between the first and second syllables: , , and . The pronunciations containing the extra syllable are usually considered nonstandard, in spite of their widespread use on radio and television. Pronunciations with similarly intrusive vowels are also heard, though with less currency, for other words, as for film, for elm, and for arthritis, rather than the standard , , and .

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonathlete
  noun
• superathlete
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• athletes
  plural

Etymology

Origin of athlete

1520–30; < Latin āthlēta < Greek āthlētḗs, equivalent to āthlē- (variant stem of āthleîn to contend for a prize, derivative of âthlos a contest) + -tēs suffix of agency

Explanation

An athlete is someone who trains for and competes in sporting events, as a professional or just for fun, like an athlete who bowls on a team, runs in local 5K races, or wins a gold medal at the Olympics. The noun athlete comes from the Greek word athletes, meaning “contestant in the games.” Anyone who competes in sporting competitions can be called an athlete, but usually the term is reserved for people with a high level of dedication, skill and fitness. If your income comes from participating in your sport, you are a professional athlete.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

athlete athletes

We invited him to debate Jeffrey Kessler, co-lead attorney for the athlete plaintiffs in the House case that created this brave new world.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026

In such a world, fans will be able to watch replays from the view of their favorite athlete.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026

"I am so privileged to have spent 35 years as an international athlete," Storey said.

From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026

Tristan Jamieson, 29, a club athlete, is travelling from Bristol to this year's London Diamond League after he paid £40 for an upper tier ticket, but he is now having second thoughts about future years.

From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026

My brother, the prodigal athlete genius girl magnet, will return to school from...let's say baseball camp...in a couple of days.

From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon

Star athletes can now legally earn millions of dollars, between direct compensation from their schools and fees the players can command for the marketing rights to their name, image and likeness, known as NIL payments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026

Soccer is the No. 1 sport in most countries, so the top athletes naturally gravitate to it.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 12, 2026

Yes, he's one of the world's highest-paid athletes and was the Premier League's top scorer last season.

From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026

They became a bigger selling point for beverages after Gatorade, launched in the 1960s, and Powerade, launched in the 1980s, marketed them as a something that could help athletes rehydrate.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 11, 2026

The foundation only waived their fees when young athletes showed potential to distinguish themselves on the national and international stage.

From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad

Related Words

• animal
• competitor
• contestant
• jock
• player
• professional
• sport