Compete Competing Kəmˈpiːt Professional Verb Games Outstanding Success

• the games were an outstanding success, with almost 2 400 athletes competing.
• he's hoping to compete in the london marathon.
• only 21 bodybuilders competed in the event.
• they are competing against teams of full-time professional players.

compete

Verb Forms

1. to take part in a contest or game
• The games were an outstanding success, with almost 2 400 athletes competing.
• He's hoping to compete in the London marathon.
• Only 21 bodybuilders competed in the event.
• They are competing against teams of full-time professional players.
• He is expected to compete for the title of world champion next year.

Extra Examples

• He regularly competes in races.
• They have what it takes to compete at the highest level of their sport.
• He welcomed the chance to compete against professional athletes.
2. to try to be more successful or better than somebody else who is trying to do the same as you
• They simply cannot compete in the international market.
• Several companies are competing for the contract.
• Young children will usually compete for their mother's attention.
• The result is more applicants competing for fewer jobs.
• Small independent bookshops find it difficult to compete with the online stores.
• For too long UK shipyards have been competing against each other.
• We can't compete with them on price.
• to compete on quality/cost
• There are too many magazines competing to attract readers.

Extra Examples

• Small traders cannot compete in the face of cheap foreign imports.
• The price must be right in order to compete internationally.
• The big companies are competing fiercely on price.
• The company is prepared to compete head-to-head with the market giants.
• Their products compete directly with ours.
• We have to compete with several larger companies.
• a readiness to compete actively in the global system
• Colleges will have to compete to attract the best students.
• Several projects are competing against each other for scarce resources.

Word Origin

• early 17th cent.: from Latin competere, in its late sense ‘strive or contend for (something)’, from com- ‘together’ + petere ‘aim at, seek’.