contender

[kuhn-ten-der]

noun

1. a person or group that competes against others to win something; contestant.

   The three remaining contenders for the Democratic Party nomination met for a televised debate.

2. a person or group with a good chance of success in a contest.

   After last season’s disaster, the Texas team needed to convince me they were a contender.

Word History and Origins

Origin of contender¹

contend ( def. ) + -er ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

Here are 25 of the major contenders, and how you can watch them.

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Arsenal have been turned into genuine title contenders by signing quality players like Rice.

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She didn’t play the Grammy contender “Anxiety” — one sees how that song wouldn’t make sense in this relentlessly hard hitting context.

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Those reinforcements would be a desirable situation for any Super Bowl contender in the NFC.

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Landman became the defensive signal-caller and has forced numerous turnovers for a Rams team that is 8-2 and a Super Bowl contender.

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Related Words

• adversary 
• challenger 
• competition 
• contestant 
• opponent 
• rival