vie

American  

[vahy] / vaɪ /

verb (used without object)

• vies,
  present (3rd person singular)
• vied,
  past participle,  past
• vying
  present participle

1. to strive in competition or rivalry with another; contend for superiority.

   Swimmers from many nations were vying for the title.

   Synonyms:

   struggle, contest, compete

---

verb (used with object)

• vies,
  present (3rd person singular)
• vied,
  past participle,  past
• vying
  present participle

1. Archaic. to put forward in competition or rivalry.

2. Obsolete. to stake in card playing.

vie British  

/ vaɪ /

verb

1. (intr; foll by with or for) to contend for superiority or victory (with) or strive in competition (for)

2. archaic (tr) to offer, exchange, or display in rivalry

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• vier
  noun
• outvie
  verb (used with object)
• vying
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• vying
  present
• vied
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• vie
  simple
• vies
  simple
• have vied
  perfect
• has vied
  perfect
• am vying
  progressive
• are vying
  progressive
• is vying
  progressive
• have been vying
  perfect progressive
• has been vying
  perfect progressive

Past

• vied
  simple
• had vied
  perfect
• was vying
  progressive
• were vying
  progressive
• had been vying
  perfect progressive

Future

• will vie
  simple
• will have vied
  perfect
• will be vying
  progressive
• will have been vying
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of vie

First recorded in 1525–35; by shortening of Middle French envier “to raise the stake (at cards),” Old French: “to challenge, provoke,” from Latin invītāre “to entertain, treat, invite”

Explanation

To vie for something means to compete for it. Two teams may vie for the gold medal, but one will have to go home with silver. Vie may be spelled the same as the French word, vie, but they are pronounced differently, vī and vē respectively, and are not related in meaning or history. English vie comes from the Latin verb meaning "to invite" as in to invite a challenge. Be careful of the spelling which includes an ie to y shift. “He intends to vie for the top prize,” but “He is vying for the top prize.”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

vie vies vied vying

County vie for roughly $200 million in federal grants to address homelessness.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

Barstool started in the Myspace era and has since watched Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitch vie for supremacy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026

And the second is this World Cup will feature a third-placed table for the first time since 1994 as teams vie for the eight remaining slots.

From BBC ● Jun. 23, 2026

Big Tech along with AI start-ups Anthropic and OpenAI are currently fighting for the top AI talent in the marketplace as they all vie for superiority in the space.

From Barron's ● Jun. 22, 2026

And vie commit her body to the ground, Earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust.

From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy

The India investment is part of Microsoft's $23bn AI expansion across countries including Canada, Portugal and the UAE, as the company vies with rivals such as Amazon and Google.

From BBC ● Dec. 10, 2025

Animation vies with anomie; the human stick figures, casting no shadows, are dwarfed by bleak urban realities.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2025

Google meanwhile has been investing heavily in AI as it vies with OpenAI, Microsoft, Amazon and others to lead with the technology.

From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2025

Investors appear to be catching on to the pattern of escalation, followed immediately by de-escalation, as each side vies for maximum leverage.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 14, 2025

This bird, which in brilliancy of plumage vies with the Hummingbirds, possesses little claim to be ranked among soberly clad British birds.

From British Birds in their Haunts by Rev. C. A. Johns

The PR consultant vied for the job of White House spokesperson for Trump's second term, but the president ultimately picked long-time loyalist Karoline Leavitt.

From Barron's ● May 15, 2026

According to Tokyo's metropolitan government, some 108,000 people vied to get one of the 4,400 slots available for one last look at the zoo's beloved pandas.

From BBC ● Jan. 25, 2026

Many clients who spoke to The Times said that among the partners, Yaghoubtil in particular vied hard to get their business.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 31, 2025

At least six bidders vied for the painting, with one competitor only jumping in once the bidding reached $171 million.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 19, 2025

The Syrian brothers vied for her attention as she sang the heavy blues that Bailey and I almost understood.

From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou

Despite this health warning, two candidates are on the ballot paper vying to take on the challenge - Michael Marra and Joe Fagan.

From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026

The companies are also vying for physical infrastructure that would enable their aircraft to take off and land in crowded areas.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026

At present, it is vying to acquire internet company Kakaku.com against LY Corp. and Bain Capital, with the competing offers valuing the company at over $4 billion.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

But France isn’t the only country vying for these limited aerial resources.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

“Anyway,” Chaol added, jerking his chin at Dorian, “I think you have far more attractive suitors vying for your attention. I’m boring company to keep.”

From "Throne of Glass" by Sarah J. Maas

Related Words

• contend
• strive