festival

1 of 2

adjective

fes·​ti·​val ˈfe-stə-vəl 

: of, relating to, appropriate to, or set apart as a festival

festival

2 of 2

noun

1

a

: a time of celebration marked by special observances

b

: feast sense 2

2

: an often periodic celebration or program of events or entertainment having a specified focus

a daffodil festival

a Greek festival

3

: gaiety, conviviality

Synonyms of festival

Noun

• celebration
• festivity
• fiesta

Examples of festival in a Sentence

Noun

Each year, a festival was held to celebrate the harvest.

The town has a summer festival in the park.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Start July 10 with Detroit in the House, a pre-festival party at Le Nocturne featuring Bruce Bailey, Glenn Underground and more. — Jennifer Day, Chicago Tribune, 9 July 2026

In 1979, de Halden accepted an invitation to take up the baton of festival head at the Berlin Film Festival, leaving his wife to lead Nyon with his support until 1993. — Zac Ntim, Deadline, 7 July 2026

Noun

Organizing the festival during wartime has given it a broader purpose, Isaienko said. — ABC News, 5 July 2026

More than 250 creators showed up across official festival programming this year, the most in Cannes Lions history. — Ian Shepherd, Forbes.com, 5 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin festivus festive

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing festival

• mooncake festival
• moon festival

Kids Definition

festival

noun

fes·​ti·​val

ˈfes-tə-vəl

1

: a time of celebration in honor of a special occasion

2

: an often regularly occurring program of events or entertainment

festival adjective

Etymology

Noun

from earlier festival (adjective), derived from early French festival "festive," from Latin festivus "festive," from festum (noun) "festival, feast" — related to feast, fiesta