competitive

adjective

com·​pet·​i·​tive kəm-ˈpe-tə-tiv 

1

: relating to, characterized by, or based on competition

competitive sports

a competitive marketplace

2

: inclined, desiring, or suited to compete

a competitive personality

competitive interest rates

3

: depending for effectiveness on the relative concentration of two or more substances

competitive inhibition of an enzyme

competitively adverb

competitiveness noun

Examples of competitive in a Sentence

She is a very competitive player.

You need a degree to be competitive in today's job market.

Recent Examples on the Web

In June 2023, OpenAI’s Sam Altman dismissed the possibility that a small team with $10 million could build a competitive large language model. —Steven Wolfe Pereira, Forbes.com, 27 Jan. 2026

Priority will be given to projects that expand medical services and create jobs with competitive wages. —Arkansas Online, 27 Jan. 2026

Webb has been one of baseball’s most durable starters over the last five seasons, but the competitive nature of the tournament will throw a wrench into his meticulous preseason ramp-up. —Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 27 Jan. 2026

In competitive markets, companies must economize and tighten their belts when faced with rising costs. —David S. Lapp, Baltimore Sun, 26 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

see competition

First Known Use

1829, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing competitive

• hyper-competitive

Rhymes for competitive

• appetitive
• repetitive
• anticompetitive
• noncompetitive
• uncompetitive

Kids Definition

competitive

adjective

com·​pet·​i·​tive kəm-ˈpet-ət-iv 

: relating to, characterized by, or based on competition

competitive sports

competitive bidding

competitively adverb

competitiveness noun

Medical Definition

competitive

adjective

com·​pet·​i·​tive kəm-ˈpet-ət-iv 

: depending for effectiveness on the relative concentration of two or more substances

competitive inhibition of an enzyme

competitive protein binding

competitively adverb