noun
Olympiad
uh-LIHM-pee-ad
noun
1
The four-year period between one Olympic Games and the next, or, loosely, the Games themselves.
"Historians still argue about which olympiad the ancient records refer to."
"The 2024 Games marked another modern olympiad."
2
A large competition modeled on the Olympics, especially an academic contest held every few years, such as the International Mathematical Olympiad.
"She won a gold medal at the International Chemistry Olympiad."
"Thousands of students compete in the national coding olympiad each year."
How to Use Olympiad
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishEither the four-year gap between Olympics, or a big skills competition styled after the Games.
Common pairings
Mathematical Olympiad
compete in the olympiad
win the olympiad
Word Forms
Olympiads plural
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Etymology
From Greek Olympias, the four-year span between Olympic Games, via Latin and French — the academic-contest sense was popularized by the International Mathematical Olympiad in the 20th century.