tournament

American  

[toor-nuh-muhnt, tur-] / ˈtʊər nə mənt, ˈtɜr- /

noun

1. a trial of skill in some game, in which competitors play a series of contests.

   a chess tournament.

2. a meeting for contests in a variety of sports, as between teams of different nations.

3. History/Historical.

   1. a contest or martial sport in which two opposing parties of mounted and armored combatants fought for a prize, with blunted weapons and in accordance with certain rules.

   2. a meeting at an appointed time and place for the performance of knightly exercises and sports.

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tournament British  

/ ˈtɜː-, ˈtʊənəmənt, ˈtɔː- /

noun

1. a sporting competition in which contestants play a series of games to determine an overall winner

2. a meeting for athletic or other sporting contestants

   an archery tournament

3. medieval history

   1. (originally) a martial sport or contest in which mounted combatants fought for a prize

   2. (later) a meeting for knightly sports and exercises

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Other Word Forms

• pretournament noun

Etymology

Origin of tournament

1175–1225; Middle English tornement < Old French torneiement, equivalent to torne ( ier ) to tourney + -ment -ment

Example Sentences

The Englishman won both the Masters and The Open on three occasions and ended his career with 43 tournament victories.

From BBC

The figure - a 16% increase on last year - is the largest player fund in the tournament's history.

From BBC

Osaka, the Melbourne champion in 2019 and 2021, said: "I just hope to be able to look back on this tournament however it ends and not have any regrets."

From Barron's

After winning its first outright Big East regular-season title in 40 years and its first Big East tournament championship in 25 years last season, St. John’s has struggled this season.

From MarketWatch

They face Croatia in Arlington, Texas on 17 June, at the start of what could potentially be a long tournament.

From BBC

Related Words

• contest
• event
• fight
• match
• meeting
• series
• sport
• test
• tourney