# fest

/ˈfɛst/ (US) · /fˈɛst/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/fest
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. a festival or gathering

noun · CEFR B2 · Informal

a large event or celebration focused on one thing, like music or food.

For teachers: a festival or large-scale gathering centered around a specific theme or interest; almost exclusively used as a suffix in compounds.

- The city is hosting a huge jazz fest in the park this weekend.
- The local arts council organized a weekend-long film fest to showcase the works of emerging directors from the region.

Usage: Usually attached to the end of a noun with or without a hyphen, such as 'film-fest' or 'foodfest'.

### 2. a lot of one thing

noun · CEFR C1 · Informal · Humorous

a situation where there is a lot of one specific activity, often something annoying or silly.

For teachers: a situation or event characterized by an excessive amount of a particular quality or activity; typically used as a suffix.

- That long meeting was a total snooze-fest and I almost fell asleep.
- The romantic comedy turned into a complete sob-fest by the final act, leaving the entire audience in tears.

Usage: Commonly used to create humorous or critical nouns like 'snooze-fest' for something boring or 'sob-fest' for a sad movie.

Teaching tip: This sense is often used to complain about something being 'too much' of a certain thing; learners should use it in casual conversation rather than formal writing.

## Examples

- The local food fest starts this weekend.
- The neighborhood holds a small music fest every summer to showcase local bands and artists.
- What began as a modest gathering of enthusiasts has evolved into a massive tech fest, attracting thousands of developers and investors from across the globe.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.