competición
/kompetiˈθjon/feminine
The English word competition translates to Spanish as competición.
competición is a feminine noun used to refer to a specific organized contest or a sporting event.
Meaning: contest for a prize or award (noun)
Which one should you use?
While competición refers to a specific organized contest or sporting event, the word competencia is more commonly used to describe a general state of rivalry or business competition.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Spain, competición is commonly used interchangeably with competencia and is more prevalent in sports-related contexts. In Argentina and Uruguay, concurso may be more common than competencia for competitions or contests.
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural form of competición is competiciones.
How do you pronounce it?
/kompetiˈθjon/
Did you know?
- The word competencia has a double meaning in Spanish that competición does not. It can refer to rivalry or to the legal authority and jurisdiction of a court or official.
- Spanish uses the verb competir for the act of competing, but the phrase dar pelea literally means 'to give a fight' and is used to describe a hard-fought competition.
- The term competencia in Spanish can also refer to a person's 'competence' or their ability to perform a task, a meaning that is different from the English 'competition'.
Examples in context
- La competición es feroz.The competition is fierce.This sentence is useful for describing the intensity of a competición.Tatoeba #5986275 by albrusgher, translation #370555 by saeb
- La competición fue feroz.The competition has become fierce.This sentence is useful for describing how a competición has changed over time.Tatoeba #1494452 by wallebot, translation #19270 by CK
- Consiguió el oro en la competición.He won gold in the competition.This sentence is useful for describing a win within a competición.Tatoeba #5423252 by emigonza, translation #5425025 by mailohilohi
- La competencia en el mercado es feroz este año.The competition in the market is fierce this year.
- ¡Participé en un concurso de baile y gané el primer lugar!I participated in a dance competition and won first place!
- Entre esos dos equipos siempre ha habido una gran rivalidad.There has always been a big rivalry between those two teams.
- 9 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Sofía and Alejandro are discussing an upcoming art event.
- Sofía¿Vas a participar en la competición de pintura?Are you going to participate in the painting competition?
- AlejandroSí, espero ganar el primer premio de la competición.Yes, I hope to win the first prize of the competition.
- SofíaEres muy talentoso, Alejandro.You are very talented, Alejandro.
- AlejandroGracias, Sofía. ¡Mucha suerte a ti también!Thanks, Sofía. Good luck to you too!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “competition” translations and entries competición, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
