gold medal

American

noun

a medal, traditionally of gold or gold color, awarded to a person or team finishing first in a competition, meet, or tournament; championship medal.

gold medal British

noun

a medal of gold, awarded to the winner of a competition or race Compare silver medal bronze medal

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

gold medalist

noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

gold medals

plural

Etymology

Origin of gold medal

First recorded in 1905–10

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:

gold medal

Plum was a key piece to Team USA’s victory over France in the gold medal game at the Paris Olympics in 2024.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 31, 2026

While Joshua had an Olympic gold medal and a deeper amateur background, victory for Itauma would make comparisons unavoidable - eclipsing Joshua to become the fastest British heavyweight to win a world title.

From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026

"I will do my very best in my role to ensure that our team wins the championship and brings back the gold medal."

From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026

A gold medal at the 2025 world championships set the stage for her triumph at the Milano-Cortina Games.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

Then he placed the gold medal over my head, just like they do in the Olympics, and had me turn to face the audience.

From "Wonder" by R. J. Palacio

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023