bullfight

American  

[bool-fahyt] / ˈbʊlˌfaɪt /

noun

• bullfights
  plural

1. a traditional Spanish, Portuguese, or Latin American spectacle in which a bull is fought by a matador, assisted by banderilleros and picadors, in a prescribed way in an arena and is usually killed.

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bullfight British  

/ ˈbʊlˌfaɪt /

noun

1. a traditional Spanish, Portuguese, and Latin American spectacle in which a matador, assisted by banderilleros and mounted picadors, baits and usually kills a bull in an arena

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• bullfighter
  noun
• bullfighting
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• bullfights
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of bullfight

First recorded in 1745–55; bull ¹ + fight

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bullfight bullfights

Olé, they yelled, as if spectators at a bullfight.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026

He still recalls the exact date in 1982 when he performed guanniu at a national ethnic-minority sports meet, and a senior government official called it "a true Chinese-style bullfight".

From Barron's ● Jun. 28, 2026

Jake and his friends stayed at the Hotel Montoya, a fictional stand-in for the long-gone Hotel Quintana, where Juanito Quintana, Hemingway’s friend and fellow bullfight aficionado, once welcomed the lost generation.

From Salon ● Nov. 8, 2025

There was a parade, a bullfight, several Catholic Masses — and ample opportunity to share the food, language and culture of a quietly powerful community tucked into California’s farmlands.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2024

There was still plenty of careless weeds and crabgrass that needed hoeing out of the corn, but I guessed I could let them go long enough to see a bullfight.

From "Old Yeller" by Fred Gipson

“Funny,” Brett remarks, absorbing quickly the nuances of bullfights, “how one doesn’t mind the blood.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

Socorro’s social nature, her spunk and her adaptability were likely rooted in her early childhood experiences tagging along with her father to bullfights and bars.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 5, 2025

On a practical level, there also wasn't a huge number of bullfights taking place - only two took place as the documentary was shooting.

From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2024

The panel also held that prohibiting bullfights restricted the rights of people connected to the industry.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 8, 2024

Some five miles from the city, she spied an enormous circular building, a stadium where bullfights took place.

From "Lupita Mañana" by Patricia Beatty

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