competition

American  

[kom-pi-tish-uhn] / ˌkɒm pɪˈtɪʃ ən /

noun

• competitions
  plural

1. the act of competing; rivalry for supremacy, a prize, etc..

   The competition between the two teams was bitter.

   Synonyms:

   emulation

2. a contest for some prize, honor, or advantage.

   Both girls entered the competition.

   Synonyms:

   struggle

3. the rivalry offered by a competitor.

   The small merchant gets powerful competition from the chain stores.

4. a competitor or competitors.

   What is your competition offering?

5. Sociology. rivalry between two or more persons or groups for an object desired in common, usually resulting in a victor and a loser but not necessarily involving the destruction of the latter.

6. Ecology. the struggle among organisms, both of the same and of different species, for food, space, and other vital requirements.

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competition British  

/ ˌkɒmpɪˈtɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of competing; rivalry

2. a contest in which a winner is selected from among two or more entrants

3. a series of games, sports events, etc

4. the opposition offered by a competitor or competitors

5. a competitor or competitors offering opposition

6. ecology the struggle between individuals of the same or different species for food, space, light, etc, when these are inadequate to supply the needs of all

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competition Scientific  

/ kŏm′pĭ-tĭsh′ən /

1. The simultaneous demand by two or more organisms for limited environmental resources, such as nutrients, living space, or light.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• supercompetition
  noun
• noncompetition
  adjective
• procompetition
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• competitions
  plural

Etymology

Origin of competition

First recorded in 1595–1605; from Late Latin competītiōn-, stem of competītiō “agreement, rivalry,” from competīt(us) “agreed, met” (past participle of competere “to agree, come together, meet”; see compete ( def. )) + -iō -ion; sense influenced by competitor

Explanation

If you are trying to win or attempting to prove you're the best, you're in a competition. The word also describes your opponent in sports, business, and politics. If you're trying to beat out someone else — whether in the Olympics or a pie-baking contest — it's a competition, and the other contestants are called the competition too. If you describe something as a "friendly competition," you're saying the outcome isn't critical, or there's no money involved. If you do something impressive in order to win, people will say competition brings out the best in you. If you try to injure your opponent, they'll say it brings out the worst.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

competition competitions

Fleetwood, the only fourth-tier side left in the competition, host Sheffield United.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

Destroys on stage during our weekly “Roast Battle” competition on Tuesdays in the Belly Room where comedians face off in a brutally funny one-on-one insult slug fest.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

At the same time, competition in China, the world’s largest auto market, remains fierce, forcing price discounts that have chipped away at margins.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026

Those partnerships include “Big Break,” a U.S. reality-TV competition series on the Golf Channel that features Good Good, as well as the Good Good Championship, a new PGA Tour event sponsored by Good Good Golf.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

Team Kyle’s bookmobile ride from Olympia Village to the Lemoncello Library was extremely quiet on the second morning of the competition.

From "Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics" by Chris Grabenstein

Uefa has threatened to boycott all Fifa competitions, with the European confederation's president Aleksander Ceferin saying he expects Infantino to resign or face a challenge in an election next March.

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

Each fall, ArtPrize — one of the world’s largest international art competitions — transforms the entire downtown into an open-air gallery.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

It follows Infantino's controversial plan to sell stakes in competitions, including the World Cup, to private investors, with the statement saying players "share the exact same concerns as the millions of fans around the world".

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

The plans were scrapped after widespread criticism, with Uefa threatening a boycott of all Fifa competitions.

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

We were also, apparently, having class spirit competitions, whatever that meant.

From "A Very Large Expanse of Sea" by Tahereh Mafi

Related Words

• championship
• clash
• event
• fight
• game
• match
• meeting
• race
• rivalry
• sport
• struggle
• tournament
• trial