cham·pi·on
ˈcham-pē-ən 
1
: a winner of first prize or first place in competition
a tennis champion
also
: one who shows marked superiority
a champion at selling
2
: a militant advocate or defender
a champion of civil rights
4
: one that does battle for another's rights or honor
God will raise me up a champion—
Sir Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott
championed; championing; champions
2
: to protect or fight for as a champion
championed the ladies chivalrously in the tilts
Synonyms
Examples of champion in a Sentence
Noun
the heavyweight boxing champion of the world
Our team will play the defending champions next week.
the newly crowned national champions
He was a champion for the working classes.
Verb
She is a lawyer who champions children's rights.
Our senator championed the idea of lowering taxes.
Recent Examples on the WebKevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2024
Recent Miss Congeniality champions all went on to star in commercials that premiered during ad breaks of the next season's broadcast.
—EW.com, 20 Apr. 2024
Boise State won its fifth Mountain West title in program history last season, and there’s a good chance the Broncos will be the preseason favorites to repeat as champions.
—Ron Counts, Idaho Statesman, 20 Apr. 2024
The 6-foot-2 forward with scholarship offers from powerhouses such as South Carolina and Notre Dame averaged 22 points and eight rebounds per game for the Central Coast Section and NorCal Open Division champions.
—Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 19 Apr. 2024
Hastings Athletics: Wrestling: Three-time individual state champion.
—Pioneer Press, Twin Cities, 19 Apr. 2024
The performer with the fewest number of votes would unmask immediately and the other two would face off in the Battle Royale to be named Group A champion.
—Dana Rose Falcone, Peoplemag, 18 Apr. 2024
Lorenzen, meanwhile, opened his 10th season with the reigning World Series champions, the Texas Rangers.
—Brian Robin, Orange County Register, 18 Apr. 2024
Mina then lit a torch held by Greece’s Olympic rowing champion, Stefanos Ntouskos.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 17 Apr. 2024
CBS News, 10 Apr. 2024
That year, President Biden, who championed the legislation, toured the TSMC complex.
—Russ Wiles, The Arizona Republic, 9 Apr. 2024
But Coulter was quick to divert from big business to champion small ones and the proverbial little guys and gals — those struggling to pay for education after high school, or to rent or buy homes, or to start small businesses.
—Bill Laytner, Detroit Free Press, 5 Apr. 2024
Mendelsohn, who owns six El Pollo Loco locations, has long championed workers’ rights, including helping trans workers connect with jobs.
—Natasha Chen, CNN, 1 Apr. 2024
His sentencing marks a major setback for the philosophy of Effective Altruism (EA), which SBF ardently championed.
—James Broughel, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
Whether on platforms like Etsy and Instagram or the aisles of prominent retailers including Sephora and Ulta, Black consumers are actively and deliberately championing products crafted for and by us.
—Ebony Flake, Essence, 29 Mar. 2024
These were made for a variety of purposes: rehearsals, demonstrations, performances, as a sounding board for ideas, as a way to persuade conductors and programmers to champion the work.
—Hugh Morris, New York Times, 29 Mar. 2024
Men like me – older and whiter – must be the first to champion women and diverse ethnicity in our modern world with our votes, at the polls and on boards which pick today’s corporate leaders.
—Peter Georgescu, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
Noun
But if the playoff history with the Oilers isn’t exactly reassuring, there are some similarities between this Kings team and the franchise’s first Stanley Cup champion in 2012 that are far more encouraging.
—Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2024
Recent Miss Congeniality champions all went on to star in commercials that premiered during ad breaks of the next season's broadcast.
—EW.com, 20 Apr. 2024
Boise State won its fifth Mountain West title in program history last season, and there’s a good chance the Broncos will be the preseason favorites to repeat as champions.
—Ron Counts, Idaho Statesman, 20 Apr. 2024
The 6-foot-2 forward with scholarship offers from powerhouses such as South Carolina and Notre Dame averaged 22 points and eight rebounds per game for the Central Coast Section and NorCal Open Division champions.
—Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 19 Apr. 2024
Hastings Athletics: Wrestling: Three-time individual state champion.
—Pioneer Press, Twin Cities, 19 Apr. 2024
The performer with the fewest number of votes would unmask immediately and the other two would face off in the Battle Royale to be named Group A champion.
—Dana Rose Falcone, Peoplemag, 18 Apr. 2024
Lorenzen, meanwhile, opened his 10th season with the reigning World Series champions, the Texas Rangers.
—Brian Robin, Orange County Register, 18 Apr. 2024
Mina then lit a torch held by Greece’s Olympic rowing champion, Stefanos Ntouskos.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 17 Apr. 2024
Verb
Democrats who have long championed civil liberties, like Sen. Ron Wyden, have aligned with Republican supporters of Trump, who in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday stated incorrectly that Section 702 had been used to spy on his presidential campaign.
—CBS News, 10 Apr. 2024
That year, President Biden, who championed the legislation, toured the TSMC complex.
—Russ Wiles, The Arizona Republic, 9 Apr. 2024
But Coulter was quick to divert from big business to champion small ones and the proverbial little guys and gals — those struggling to pay for education after high school, or to rent or buy homes, or to start small businesses.
—Bill Laytner, Detroit Free Press, 5 Apr. 2024
Mendelsohn, who owns six El Pollo Loco locations, has long championed workers’ rights, including helping trans workers connect with jobs.
—Natasha Chen, CNN, 1 Apr. 2024
His sentencing marks a major setback for the philosophy of Effective Altruism (EA), which SBF ardently championed.
—James Broughel, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
Whether on platforms like Etsy and Instagram or the aisles of prominent retailers including Sephora and Ulta, Black consumers are actively and deliberately championing products crafted for and by us.
—Ebony Flake, Essence, 29 Mar. 2024
These were made for a variety of purposes: rehearsals, demonstrations, performances, as a sounding board for ideas, as a way to persuade conductors and programmers to champion the work.
—Hugh Morris, New York Times, 29 Mar. 2024
Men like me – older and whiter – must be the first to champion women and diverse ethnicity in our modern world with our votes, at the polls and on boards which pick today’s corporate leaders.
—Peter Georgescu, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'champion.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to champion
Dictionary Entries Near champion
Cite this Entry
“Champion.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/champion. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
champion
1 of 2 noun
cham·pi·on
ˈcham-pē-ən
1
: a person who fights or speaks for another person or in favor of a cause
2
: the winner of first prize or first place in a competition
also
: one showing superior skill or ability
champion
2 of 2 verb
: to protect or fight for as a champion
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share