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
The opening ceremonies, the global stage, medals around necks, a gold one around his. Brandon Sneed, Rolling Stone, 16 Apr. 2024 Runners at the Boston Marathon are disappointed that the new finisher medals feature a large bank logo across the bottom. Rory Smith, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2024 Post-run party Following the run, all runners will receive a medal and bundle of chocolate goodies to enjoy at William G. Milliken State Park, one of Detroit's best riverfront parks. Detroit Free Press, 12 Apr. 2024 Traditionally, Olympic medal winners don’t receive prize money as the event originated as an amateur competition. Sammy Mncwabe, CNN, 10 Apr. 2024 Nearly 30 years later, the Hall of Famer reminisced about the frustrating experience which led up to the unlikely demise of his medal while on The Big Podcast with Shaq with co-host Adam Lefkoe. Anna Lazarus Caplan, Peoplemag, 4 Apr. 2024 Paralympian Sarah Storey, who has won 28 medals, is also in the video. Beth Ann Mayer, Parents, 28 Mar. 2024 Now in their 90s, the World War II veterans are headed to France, with Archie in tow, to receive the Legion of Honor medal. Yvonne Zipp, The Christian Science Monitor, 28 Mar. 2024 The Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10-mile and 5K will commemorate the beloved tree next month with its image on race T-shirts and race medals, and a full-size Stumpy mascot. Kevin Ambrose, Washington Post, 14 Mar. 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 24 Apr. 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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