festival

1 of 2

adjective

fes·​ti·​val ˈfe-stə-vəl 

: of, relating to, appropriate to, or set apart as a festival

festival

2 of 2

noun

1

a

: a time of celebration marked by special observances

b

: feast sense 2

2

: an often periodic celebration or program of events or entertainment having a specified focus

a daffodil festival

a Greek festival

3

: gaiety, conviviality

Synonyms

Noun

• celebration
• festivity

Examples of festival in a Sentence

Noun

Each year, a festival was held to celebrate the harvest.

The town has a summer festival in the park.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The festival unspools at the Culver Theatre in Culver City. —Carole Horst, Variety, 29 Oct. 2025

The 2025 festival lineup includes Guillermo Del Toro’s adaptation of Frankenstein, starring Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth and Christoph Waltz. —Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 29 Oct. 2025

Noun

The interviewer then noted that Kirson later apologized and donated her profits from the festival to an unspecified human rights organization, and that the festival required comedians not to criticize the Saudi government. —James Factora, Them., 28 Oct. 2025

More announcements are set to be made about the lineup and across the festival’s theater and immersive art offerings. —Sophie Williams, Billboard, 28 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin festivus festive

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing festival

• mooncake festival
• moon festival

Kids Definition

festival

noun

fes·​ti·​val

ˈfes-tə-vəl

1

: a time of celebration in honor of a special occasion

2

: an often regularly occurring program of events or entertainment

festival adjective

Etymology

Noun

from earlier festival (adjective), derived from early French festival "festive," from Latin festivus "festive," from festum (noun) "festival, feast" — related to feast, fiesta