medal

1 of 2

noun

med·​al ˈme-dᵊl How to pronounce medal (audio)
1
: a small usually metal object bearing a religious emblem or picture
2
: a piece of metal often resembling a coin and having a stamped design that is issued to commemorate a person or event or awarded for excellence or achievement

medal

2 of 2

verb

medaled also medalled; medaling also medalling
ˈmed-liŋ,
ˈme-dᵊl-iŋ How to pronounce medal (audio)

intransitive verb

: to win a medal
medaled in figure skating

Examples of medal in a Sentence

Noun He was awarded a medal for his heroism. the display case held an impressive array of military medals from World War II Verb She medaled in figure skating in the Olympics.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
All runners will get a bib and T-shirt, with the first 3,500 to cross the finish line earning a medal. Detroit Free Press, 10 Mar. 2024 Four out of the five films nominated feature historical settings, the most recent of those being Oppenheimer’s conclusion in the early 1960s, when the physicist is granted a medal by President Lyndon B. Johnson. Liam Hess, Vogue, 8 Mar. 2024 The 35-year-old van Gorp, a competitive b-boy from the Netherlands known simply as Menno, is a medal hopeful at the upcoming Olympics, where breakdance – or breaking – will make its debut as the Games’ newest sport. George Ramsay, CNN, 5 Mar. 2024 Each medal is different, with the older award being about 142 grams of 14-karat gold and the newer medal being made of silver with a 24-karat gold plating. Sacramento Bee, 21 Feb. 2024 The Prince of Wales, 41, presented Clarke, 37, and her mother with Most Excellent Order of the British Empire medals in recognition of their services to people with brain injuries. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 21 Feb. 2024 On rare occasions, President Vladimir V. Putin visits the wounded in hospitals, pinning medals on their crisp, cobalt blue military pajamas. Milana Mazaeva, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2024 Participants receive a shirt, two drink tickets, a Skyline Chili Cheese Coney and a finisher's medal. Details: 10 a.m. Luann Gibbs, The Enquirer, 28 Feb. 2024 The American silver is the 37th medal won by the United States at these games and the U.S. wins the medals race for the first time since 1932. Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2024
Verb
Tanith Belbin and partner Ben Agosto end the U.S. medals drought in Olympic ice dance competition with a silver. Austin Knoblauch, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2024 Both laughed, but in all seriousness, picking this team won’t be easy for Hill as there is pressure to win gold after failing to medal in the 2023 FIBA World Cup. Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 30 Jan. 2024 Portis represented the United States for the first time last summer in the World Cup where Team USA did not medal in finishing in fourth place. Jim Owczarski, Journal Sentinel, 24 Jan. 2024 See: Red Gerard, who, at the 2018 PyeongChang Games, became the youngest American to medal in a snowboarding event at the Olympics, or Chloe Kim, who at those same Games became the youngest woman to win an Olympic snowboarding gold medal. Michelle Bruton, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024 Jordan Taylor, 14, a favorite to medal in the 100 and 200, qualified for the 100 semifinals with the 15th fastest time but was injured during the race and scratched himself from both events. Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024 Felicia Stancil will be favored in women’s BMX, and Haley Batten should medal in mountain biking. John Powers, BostonGlobe.com, 26 July 2023 Claude-Alain Mayor, the secretary general for the Association for the Promotion of Chasselas (APC), confirmed that Laurel Ridge is the first American winery to medal at the competition. Michael Alberty | , oregonlive, 11 Aug. 2023 In other action Thursday, the U.S. women's hockey team fell to Canada in the gold medal game, settling for silver and Mikaela Shiffrin skied out in the slalom run of the combined and will not medal in Beijing. Editors, USA TODAY, 17 Feb. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'medal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle French medaille, from Old Italian medaglia coin worth half a denarius, medal, from Vulgar Latin *medalis half, alteration of Late Latin medialis middle, from Latin medius — more at mid

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1578, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1979, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of medal was circa 1578

Dictionary Entries Near medal

Cite this Entry

“Medal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/medal. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

medal

noun
med·​al
ˈmed-ᵊl
: a piece of metal often in the form of a coin with design and words in honor of a special event, a person, or an achievement

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