gala
Americanadjective
noun
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galas
plural
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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:
Rosé will perform at the gala, a fundraiser that seeks to draw the previously more siloed visual art and movie worlds in Los Angeles closer together.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
Starting in 2027, the agreement replaces a rotation of the gala among major networks like ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
At the Brics summit in India earlier in September, Xi skipped a gala dinner attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin and other world leaders because he wasn’t feeling well, The Wall Street Journal reported.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
The 49th Kennedy Center Honors gala will go on despite the recent closure of the Kennedy Center, with the event moving to the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 7.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
Curls of ticker tape in the national colors coiled along the yardsticks of our gala dinner.
From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck
She was named to Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in sports in 2026 and has been a ubiquitous presence on red carpets, major sporting events and galas.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
Trump and Sean “Diddy” Combs have been known acquaintances for years—or whatever it’s called when two rich and famous dudes in entertainment are often invited to the same charity events, galas, and afterparties.
From Slate ● Jun. 11, 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
Lily and Annabel shared their names with Johnson’s biological daughters, while Angelina and Orlando were a nod to the kind of celebrities she sometimes rubbed shoulders with at charity galas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2025
She was often featured in the society pages of newspapers and magazines, attending balls and galas.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
