# athlete

Pronunciation: say "ATH-leet" US /ˈæθ.lit/, UK /ˈæθ.liːt/

## Noun

1. Someone who plays or competes in physical sports, especially with a high level of skill. *(Canada, US)*
   - Simple: A person who plays sports, especially someone who is very good at them.
   - _The college recruited several promising athletes from across the state._
   - _As a dedicated athlete, she balanced daily training with a full course load._
2. A person who is exceptionally fit and physically capable.
   - Simple: A person who is very fit and strong, even if they do not play sports.
   - _At seventy, he remains a true athlete, swimming a mile each morning._
   - _Years of manual labor made her a natural athlete with remarkable stamina._
3. A competitor in track and field sports, including road running, cross country running, and racewalking.
   - Simple: Someone who competes in track and field events like running, jumping, throwing, and racewalking.
   - _Each athlete checked their spikes before the 400-meter final._
   - _Marathon athletes and racewalkers shared the same training track that season._

## Origin

The word came through Middle English from Latin "āthlēta" (and probably partly from Middle French "athlete"), which came from Ancient Greek "athlētḗs." That in turn came from "athléō" ("compete for a prize"), based on "âthlon" ("prize") or "âthlos" ("competition").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/athlete (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).