festival

1 of 2

noun

Synonyms of festival
1
a
: a time of celebration marked by special observances
b
: feast sense 2
2
: an often periodic celebration or program of events or entertainment having a specified focus
a daffodil festival
a Greek festival
3
: gaiety, conviviality

festival

2 of 2

adjective

fes·​ti·​val ˈfe-stə-vəl How to pronounce festival (audio)
: of, relating to, appropriate to, or set apart as a festival

Synonyms of festival

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Noun

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Examples of festival in a Sentence

Noun Each year, a festival was held to celebrate the harvest. The town has a summer festival in the park.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
The two-day music festival runs through early Sunday morning and was expecting about 40,000 fans each day. — Isabel Rivera, Miami Herald, 18 Oct. 2026 The project was a prominent act on Stones Throw Records, which had initially booked Los Retros to co-headline its 30th anniversary festival. — Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026
Adjective
Moroney previously played GoldenSky in 2023, while Bryan and Myers will make their festival debut next year. — Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 15 Oct. 2026 Atlanta Pride, founded in 1970, said the festival has drawn more than 350,000 people over the festival weekend in recent years. — Daniel Wilkerson, CBS News, 12 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for festival

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin festivus festive

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of festival was in the 14th century

Phrases Containing festival

Browse Nearby Words

festino
festival
festivalgoer
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Festival.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/festival. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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Kids Definition

festival

noun
fes·​ti·​val
ˈfes-tə-vəl
1
: a time of celebration in honor of a special occasion
2
: an often regularly occurring program of events or entertainment
festival adjective
Etymology

Noun

from earlier festival (adjective), derived from early French festival "festive," from Latin festivus "festive," from festum (noun) "festival, feast" — related to feast, fiesta

More from Merriam-Webster on festival

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about festival

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