competition

noun

com·​pe·​ti·​tion ˌkäm-pə-ˈti-shən 

1

: the act or process of competing : rivalry: such as

a

: the effort of two or more parties acting independently to secure the business of a third party by offering the most favorable terms

contractors in competition for the contract to build the new school

b

: active demand by two or more organisms or kinds of organisms for some environmental resource in short supply

the interspecies competition for food

2

: a contest between rivals

a gymnastics competition

also : one's competitors

faced tough competition

Synonyms

• tournament
• event
• game
• contest
• match

Examples of competition in a Sentence

Prices are lower when there is competition among the stores.

Don't let the competition know our trade secrets.

They had a competition to see who could sell the most lemonade.

Recent Examples on the Web

The last northeastern gallery in this competition assailed Montgomerie so relentlessly during his match with Payne Stewart that the Scotsman’s father walked off the course on the front nine. —Ian O'Connor, New York Times, 24 Sep. 2025

Burton rose to fame in 2000 after winning a competition on MTV's Total Request Live (TRL) and staying on as a full-time VJ (video jockey). —Alexandra Schonfeld, PEOPLE, 23 Sep. 2025

Its grocery delivery business in the UK also faced competition from the likes of Sainsbury’s, Ocado and Tesco during the pandemic, when lockdowns drove an online shopping boom. —Ana Nicolaci Da Costa, CNN Money, 23 Sep. 2025

Not to mention keeping up with the latest trends and having to always outperform your competition. —Emily Zarevich, JSTOR Daily, 23 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Late Latin competition-, competitio, from Latin competere — see compete

First Known Use

1579, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing competition

• in competition with
• the competition

Rhymes for competition

• abolition
• acquisition
• admonition
• ammunition
• apparition
• apposition
• coalition
• composition
• definition
• deglutition
• demolition
• deposition

Kids Definition

competition

noun

com·​pe·​ti·​tion ˌkäm-pə-ˈtish-ən 

1

: the act or process of competing

2

a

: a contest between rivals

b

: rivalry

c

: an individual or group one is competing against

look over the competition

3

: the effort of persons or firms to attract business by offering the most favorable terms

4

: the active seeking after and use of an environmental resource (as food) in limited supply by two or more plants or animals or kinds of plants and animals