# campaign

Pronunciation: say "kam-PAYN" /kæmˈpeɪn/

## Noun

1. A connected series of actions or operations carried out to achieve a particular goal.
   - Simple: A set of planned actions done over time to reach a goal.
   - _The mayor launched a campaign to reduce homelessness across the city._
   - _Their marketing campaigns target younger consumers through social media._
2. A connected series of military operations with a single objective, making up one distinct phase of a war or fought within one region.
   - Simple: A set of military actions in a war, aimed at one goal or fought in one area.
   - _The Gallipoli campaign ended with the withdrawal of the Allied forces._
   - _Napoleon's campaigns in Italy made his name as a general._
4. A team or player's overall performance and efforts across a single sporting season.
   - Simple: A team or player's performance and efforts during one sports season.
   - _United's campaign ended in disappointment after a string of late-season defeats._
   - _She enjoyed her best campaign yet, scoring twenty goals._
5. The principal story mode of a video game, which the player works through as a sequence of linked missions or levels.
   - Simple: The main story part of a video game, played as a chain of missions or levels.
   - _The single-player campaign runs to about fifteen missions, each ending in a boss fight._
   - _Reviewers praised the multiplayer but called the campaign short and forgettable._
6. An ongoing series of tabletop sessions in which the same characters advance through one connected storyline.
   - Simple: A set of linked game sessions that follow the same characters through one long story.
   - _The dungeon master spent weeks preparing the next stage of the campaign._
   - _Their campaign branched in unexpected directions after the players betrayed an ally._

## Verb

3. To take an active part in an organized effort directed at achieving a goal.
   - Simple: To take part in a series of planned actions aimed at reaching a goal.
   - _Activists campaign tirelessly for environmental protection._
   - _She campaigned across three states ahead of the election._
7. To enter and race a horse or vehicle consistently across the events of a racing season.
   - Simple: To race a horse, car, or boat regularly during a racing season.
   - _Her owners plan to campaign the filly in California this winter before shipping her east for the spring stakes races._
   - _Owners often campaign a promising horse aggressively to build its reputation._

## Noun

8. A broad expanse of open, level country largely free of considerable hills. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A wide, flat stretch of open land with few or no hills.
9. An outing or excursion taken into the countryside, typically for pleasure or recreation. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A trip out into the countryside for pleasure.

## Other meanings

- (noun) The span of time during which a blast furnace runs continuously before being shut down.

## Origin

The root is Latin campus ("field"). Late Latin turned it into campānia ("open country, battlefield"), Italian into campagna ("field, military operation"), and French into campagne, the form English took. Champagne, campania, and campagna are all doublets of it.

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