athletics

[ath-let-iks]

noun

1. (usually used with a plural verb),  athletic sports, as running, rowing, or boxing.

2. British.,  track-and-field events.

3. (usually used with a singular verb),  the practice of athletic exercises; the principles of athletic training.

athletics

/ æθˈlɛtɪks /

noun

1. 1. track and field events

   2. ( as modifier )

      an athletics meeting

2. sports or exercises engaged in by athletes

3. the theory or practice of athletic activities and training

Pronunciation Note

See athlete.

Word History and Origins

Origin of athletics¹

First recorded in 1595–1605; athletic, -ics

Example Sentences

“This is an athletics issue,” Kraft said when asked about the costs of Franklin’s buyout.

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Beneath the towering, neon-lit billboards of Times Square, six of the world's top long jumpers are soaring through the air, turning one of New York's most iconic streets into an unlikely athletics stage.

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But I’ve come to not only tolerate my sons’ athletics—these activities, and the communities surrounding them, have truly enriched our lives.

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So she moved on from rugby and took up athletics.

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Critics argued the golf series was a deliberate attempt at “sportswashing” by “banking on the glamour of athletics to outshine concerns about a history of human rights abuses,” The Times reported at the time.

Read more on Los Angeles Times