spectator sport

noun

1. any sport that can be watched by spectators, as football or basketball, usually for a fee.

spectator sport

noun

1. a sport that attracts more people as spectators than as participants

Word History and Origins

Origin of spectator sport¹

First recorded in 1940–45

Example Sentences

Horse racing is the second-biggest spectator sport in Britain, behind football, with more than 1,400 fixtures a year.

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But, Rosenfield said, “When we take joy in the distress and ruination of other people, we make monsters of ourselves,” in that the internet has turned public shaming into a gleeful, global spectator sport.

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And the league's attempt to turn this into a lucrative spectator sport contradicts the values of many in the Pacific Islander community, Penaia says.

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Americans began to hold their own by the 1920s, and professional golf has increased in popularity as a spectator sport to this day.

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In Fields’ words, 24hr racing is “definitely not a spectator sport”, which might explain why there is genuine excitement every four hours when all the runners change direction in an attempt to prevent injury.

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