ENGLISH
REFERENCE

competitor

n. countable
B1 Intermediate Oxford US //kəmˈpɛtətɝ// UK //kəmpˈɛtɪtɐ// com·peti·tor Archaic General-service

n. a person or company that tries to be more successful than others in a contest or in business. You use this when someone is racing against you or selling the same products as you.

n. a person, team, or organization that takes part in a contest or strives for market share against others. Often used in commercial contexts to refer to rival firms within the same industry.


SIMPLE

The company is much cheaper than its main competitor.

CONTEXTUAL

Every competitor in the marathon must attend a safety briefing before the race begins on Sunday morning.

COMPLEX

As globalization lowers barriers to entry, a local business may find that its most dangerous competitor is no longer the shop across the street, but a digital platform operating from another continent.

Synonyms
Origin

Borrowed from Middle French compétiteur, from Latin competitor.

Usage

Commonly takes the preposition 'of' or 'to' when indicating the relationship to another entity, as in 'a competitor to the market leader'.

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