Olympic Games

plural noun

1

: an ancient Panhellenic festival held every fourth year and made up of contests of sports, music, and literature with the victor's prize a crown of wild olive

2

: a modified revival of the ancient Olympic Games consisting of international athletic contests that are held at separate winter and summer gatherings at four year intervals

called also Olym*pics\ ə-​ˈlim-​piks , ō-​ \

Examples of Olympic Games in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The total gold medals surpassed the 10 won in Salt Lake City in 2002, the last time the United States hosted an Olympic Games. —Los Angeles Times, 23 Feb. 2026

At long last, on the final day of competition at the Milano Cortina Olympic Games, Eileen Gu got her gold. —Sean Gregory, Time, 22 Feb. 2026

As the final weekend of the 2026 Winter Olympic Games comes to a close, many athletes are returning to their 9-to-5 jobs, with some even retiring from their sport for good. —Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 22 Feb. 2026

That’s the moment, two weeks before this closing ceremony Sunday, when everything changed — for Vonn, for Alpine skiing, in some ways for these Olympic Games. —Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1586, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for Olympic Games

• aims
• blames
• claims
• dames
• fames
• flames
• frames
• hames
• kames
• lames
• names
• shames

Kids Definition

Olympic Games

plural noun

1

: an ancient Greek festival held every fourth year and made up of contests in sports, music, and literature

2

: a series of international athletic contests held in a different country during the summer and the winter once every four years