spectator sport
noun
1
: a sport (such as football, baseball, ice hockey, etc.) that many people watch
2
: something that people watch other people do without becoming involved themselves
For many, politics has become a spectator sport.
Examples of spectator sport in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Democracy cannot be a spectator sport, especially at this time.
—
Angus King, Time, 18 Apr. 2025
To become a top-tier spectator sport in the U.S. Padel needs to create development pathways for kids.
—Vitas Carosella, Forbes.com, 8 Apr. 2025
Football, also known as American football or gridiron football, is the most popular spectator sport in the United States.
—Michael Bartiromo, The Hill, 6 Feb. 2025
Japan is seen as an important market for baseball, which was introduced to the country in 1872 and is now its most popular spectator sport.
—Janis MacKey Frayer, NBC News, 18 Mar. 2025
With celebrity litigation becoming a spectator sport the whole world seems to enjoy (a betting market is surely coming?), the tactics and techniques used in such cases are now squarely in the spotlight.
—Barbara A. Perry, Newsweek, 27 Jan. 2025
Treating the tragedies of others like a spectator sport is almost always repugnant, but the calculating Kelly-Anne (Juliette Gariépy) and Ted Bundy fan girl-type Clémentine (Laurie Babin) approach the perverse pastime from opposite ends of the attention-seeking spectrum.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 1 Jan. 2025
The term evolved as high-siding became a spectator sport into sideshows.
—Nollyanne Delacruz, The Mercury News, 9 Dec. 2024
That’s why these missions are often blocked, or else their mandates are severely diluted, which essentially renders peacekeeping a spectator sport.
—John Prendergast, Foreign Affairs, 15 Dec. 2016
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Angus King, Time, 18 Apr. 2025
To become a top-tier spectator sport in the U.S. Padel needs to create development pathways for kids.
—Vitas Carosella, Forbes.com, 8 Apr. 2025
Football, also known as American football or gridiron football, is the most popular spectator sport in the United States.
—Michael Bartiromo, The Hill, 6 Feb. 2025
Japan is seen as an important market for baseball, which was introduced to the country in 1872 and is now its most popular spectator sport.
—Janis MacKey Frayer, NBC News, 18 Mar. 2025
With celebrity litigation becoming a spectator sport the whole world seems to enjoy (a betting market is surely coming?), the tactics and techniques used in such cases are now squarely in the spotlight.
—Barbara A. Perry, Newsweek, 27 Jan. 2025
Treating the tragedies of others like a spectator sport is almost always repugnant, but the calculating Kelly-Anne (Juliette Gariépy) and Ted Bundy fan girl-type Clémentine (Laurie Babin) approach the perverse pastime from opposite ends of the attention-seeking spectrum.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 1 Jan. 2025
The term evolved as high-siding became a spectator sport into sideshows.
—Nollyanne Delacruz, The Mercury News, 9 Dec. 2024
That’s why these missions are often blocked, or else their mandates are severely diluted, which essentially renders peacekeeping a spectator sport.
—John Prendergast, Foreign Affairs, 15 Dec. 2016
Cite this Entry
“Spectator sport.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spectator%20sport. Accessed 7 May. 2025.
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