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definitions

gymnasia

1
[gim-nah-zee-uh]
noun
  1. a plural of gymnasium1.

gymnasia

2
[jim-ney-zee-uh, -zhuh]
noun
  1. a plural of gymnasium2.

gymnasium

1
[jim-ney-zee-uh m]
noun, plural gym·na·si·ums, gym·na·si·a [jim-ney-zee-uh, -zhuh] /dʒɪmˈneɪ zi ə, -ʒə/.
  1. a building or room designed and equipped for indoor sports, exercise, or physical education.
  2. a place where Greek youths met for exercise and discussion.

Origin of gymnasium

1
1590–1600; < Latin: a public school for gymnastics < Greek gymnásion gymnastic school (derivative of gymnázein to train in the nude
Related formsgym·na·si·al, adjective

gymnasium

2
[gim-nah-zee-uh m]
noun, plural gym·na·si·ums, gym·na·si·a [gim-nah-zee-uh] /gɪmˈnɑ zi ə/.
  1. (often initial capital letter) (in continental Europe, especially Germany) a classical school preparatory to the universities.

Origin of gymnasium

2
1685–95; < German; special use of gymnasium1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for gymnasia

theater, amphitheater, stadium, gym, rink, center, floor, coliseum, circus, alley, course, hippodrome, spa, ring, pit, sweatshop

Examples from the Web for gymnasia

Historical Examples of gymnasia

  • Had you rather witness the sports of the gymnasia than the works of artists?

    Philothea

    Lydia Maria Child

  • Are not those who train in gymnasia, at first beginning reduced to a state of weakness?

    Laws

    Plato

  • If he, or she, has greater ambitions, there are gymnasia for boys and high schools for girls.

    Bulgaria

    Frank Fox

  • The directors of the gymnasia were in reality physicians, and acted as such.

  • Then there are roundabouts uncountable, and gymnasia abundant.

    Mystic London:

    Charles Maurice Davies

British Dictionary definitions for gymnasia

gymnasium

noun plural -siums or -sia (-zɪə)
  1. a large room or hall equipped with bars, weights, ropes, etc, for games or physical training
  2. (in various European countries) a secondary school that prepares pupils for university

Word Origin for gymnasium

C16: from Latin: school for gymnastics, from Greek gumnasion, from gumnazein to exercise naked, from gumnos naked
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
Word Origin and History for gymnasia

gymnasium

n.

1590s, "place of exercise," from Latin gymnasium "school for gymnastics," from Greek gymnasion "public place where athletic exercises are practiced; gymnastics school," in plural, "bodily exercises," from gymnazein "to exercise or train," literally or figuratively, literally "to train naked," from gymnos "naked" (see naked). Introduced to German 15c. as a name for "high school" (more or less paralleling a sense in Latin); in English it has remained purely athletic.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper