competitor

noun

com·​pet·​i·​tor kəm-ˈpe-tə-tər How to pronounce competitor (audio)
: one that competes: such as
a
: rival
a fierce competitor on the soccer field
b
: one selling or buying goods or services in the same market as another
offering lower prices than our competitors
c
: an organism that lives in competition with another
The squid population increased dramatically when food competitors were depleted by heavy overfishing.

Examples of competitor in a Sentence

We offer better rates than our competitors. There were more than 500 competitors in the race.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Their competitors followed suit. Alice Callahan, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025 First Brands turned to the private credit market for help acquiring competitors. Elisabeth Buchwald, CNN Money, 16 Oct. 2025 But so far, no other competitors — including Boeing and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin — have been able to offer anything close to what SpaceX has. Denise Chow, NBC news, 16 Oct. 2025 Other technologies, notably hydrogen, are also competitors to heat batteries. Bloomberg, Mercury News, 16 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for competitor

Word History

Etymology

see competition

First Known Use

1534, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of competitor was in 1534

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Competitor.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/competitor. Accessed 22 Oct. 2025.

Kids Definition

competitor

noun
com·​pet·​i·​tor kəm-ˈpet-ət-ər How to pronounce competitor (audio)
: one that competes especially in the selling of goods or services : rival

More from Merriam-Webster on competitor

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