gala
Americanadjective
noun
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a festive occasion; celebration; special entertainment.
a gala featuring opera stars in their most famous scenes.
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festal pomp or dress.
noun
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a celebration; festive occasion
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( as modifier )
a gala occasion
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a sporting occasion involving competitions in several events
a swimming gala
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of gala
1615–25; < French < Italian < Old French; see gallant
Explanation
A gala is a big party. If you're going to a gala, you'll want to wear your fanciest ball gown — you'll want to look great for the best party of the year. A gala often features entertainment and dinner, and sometimes dancing and an auction. It's like a prom — but for adults. If you want to raise money for your favorite hospital, or museum, or theater, you could throw a gala, charge people a lot to attend, and give your profits to the charity. A gala can also be just a big celebration, like a gala dinner before the Oscars ceremony. Gala is from the Old French gale, "rejoicing."
Vocabulary lists containing gala
I Am Malala
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Fever 1793
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Academy Awards, List 2
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
During a gala Friday celebrating press freedom, President Trump finally got to deliver the biting speech he had long teased.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026
One weird trick to make your summer gala better.
From Slate ● Jun. 29, 2026
Here’s an idea for next year’s opening night gala: Reassemble these luminaries for a concert version of a musical and watch them scale new heights together.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 22, 2026
Macron, under pressure to show he is not fawning over Trump, has already said the evening at Versailles will not be a "gala" dinner.
From Barron's ● Jun. 17, 2026
The Mutual had thrown a five-day-long “Dedication Festival,” a gala event that included a formal banquet held, not on the NCC campus, but in Duke University’s “Great Hall.”
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
There have been security incidents at big-ticket galas before, most notably when a couple of fame-seekers crashed a state dinner in the first year of the Obama administration.
From Slate ● Apr. 28, 2026
Designers cater to an extremely exclusive clientele able to purchase pieces for thousands of dollars intended for red carpets, galas, weddings or other public events.
From Barron's ● Jan. 26, 2026
The two became friends, sometimes going to dinner and galas together.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 25, 2025
Only three Grand Slam galas - the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open - have been worth attending.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2025
The two of them had been a compatible, attractive, and charming couple, making the rounds of the black community’s fall galas, debutante balls, picnics, and fundraisers.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
