competition

Etymology

It is borrowed from Late Latin competītiō (“rivalry”),^{[2][3][4][5][6]} formed from the past participle stem of competō^[3][4][7] with the suffix -iō.^[4][7] The OED glosses the Latin noun "agreement, a judicial demand, rivalry".^[8] In classical Latin the verb meant to come together, coincide, agree or be fitting, and the sense "to strive together for something" arose only in later Latin.^[9][10][8] It is made up of com- (“together”) and petō (“to aim at, seek, strive for”),^[9][10][8] from Proto-Indo-European *pet- (“to rush, to fly”).^[10] Dictionary.com notes that the English sense was influenced by competitor.^[7] The same Latin verb gave compete and competent, and the simple verb gave petition, appetite and repeat.^[9][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The act of competing; rivalry: 1579, in Merriam-Webster's dating.^[4] The OED's first record is from 1605, in Francis Bacon, in the phrase in competition,^[8][5] and Dictionary.com dates the word to 1595–1605.^[7]

Semantic evolution

The OED defines the first sense as striving for something that others are also trying to obtain.^[8] Johnson (1755) defined it as "the act of endeavouring to gain what another endeavours to gain at the same time; rivalry; contest".^[11] A contest for a prize, or to decide who is best, is recorded from 1618,^[8][5] and rivalry between traders for customers from 1793, in Bentham.^[8][5] Barnhart and Etymonline suggest that the market sense of the verb compete (1840s) and its use in sport (late 19th century) may be back-formations from competition,^[5][10] since the verb was rare in the 17th century.^[10][6] A verb competition, "to compete", was used in 1650.^[8] In biology the word has meant the interaction of organisms that share a limited resource since 1905,^[8] and the competition, one's rivals in business or a contest, since 1961.^[8]

Timeline

• 1579 – the act of competing; rivalry.^[4] The OED has it from 1605, in Bacon.^[8][5]
• 1618 – a contest for a prize.^[8][5]
• 1650 – verb, to compete (obsolete).^[8]
• 1793 – rivalry between traders for customers, in Bentham.^[8][5]
• 1905 – in biology, the struggle between organisms for limited resources.^[8]
• 1961 – the competition, one's rivals.^[8]

Meanings

Noun

1. The act of competing with others; rivalry: There was fierce competition for the job.^[12][4][13]
2. A contest in which a winner is chosen from those taking part: a poetry competition.^[12][13][8]
3. Rivalry between businesses trying to win the same customers or market.^[13][8]
4. The person or people one is competing against: Their main competition comes from overseas firms.^[12][13][8]
5. (ecology) The struggle between organisms for limited resources such as food or light.^[12][13][8]

Word family

• noncompetition
• procompetition
• unfair competition

Related words

• competitive
• compete
• competent
• competitor
• petition
• appetite
• repeat

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
4. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
6. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b c d Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
9. ^ a b c Ayto, John (2005), Word Origins: The Secret Histories of English Words from A to Z, 2nd ed., London: A & C Black
10. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
11. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
12. ^ a b c d Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
13. ^ a b c d e The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin