stadium

noun

sta·​di·​um ˈstā-dē-əm How to pronounce stadium (audio)
plural stadiums or stadia ˈstā-dē-ə How to pronounce stadium (audio)
Synonyms of stadiumnext
1
: a large usually roofless building with tiers of seats for spectators at sports events
2
a
: a tiered structure with seats for spectators surrounding an ancient Greek running track
b
: a course for footraces in ancient Greece
3
a
: any of various ancient Greek units of length ranging in value from 607 to 738 feet (about 185 to 225 meters)
b
: an ancient Roman unit of length equal to 607 feet (185 meters)
4
[New Latin, from Latin] : a stage in a life history
especially : one between successive molts of an insect

Synonyms of stadium

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Examples of stadium in a Sentence

the football game will be held at the new stadium, which seats 100,000 people
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.
Nellis Air Force Base Public Affairs issued a statement saying that the service member — assigned to the 6th Combat Training Squadron, Detachment 2 — was injured at the stadium and died at a local hospital. — ABC News, 18 Oct. 2026 Waiting for the Jets are the defending AFC champion Patriots and a stadium that has delivered far more misery than milestones. — Antwan Staley, New York Daily News, 18 Oct. 2026 The East Aurora High School campus and its stadium were centrally located on the East Side, and the field lights and sounds resonated on football game nights. — Tom Strong, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026 How the stadium looks reflects UConn’s potential for playing in the big time. — Eric Womack, Hartford Courant, 18 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for stadium

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin, from Greek stadion

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3a

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

Rhymes for stadium

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Browse Nearby Words

stadimeter
stadium
stadium boot
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Cite this Entry

“Stadium.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stadium. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Kids Definition

stadium

noun
sta·​di·​um ˈstād-ē-əm How to pronounce stadium (audio)
plural stadia
-ē-ə
 or stadiums
1
: a course for footraces in ancient Greece with rows of seats for spectators
2
plural usually stadiums : a large usually roofless building with rows of seats for spectators at modern sports events
Etymology

Middle English stadium "a course for races in ancient Greece, a large structure for sports events," from Latin stadium (same meaning), from Greek stadion "a course for footraces, a unit of measurement"

Word Origin
A stadion in ancient Greece was a unit of measurement equal to about 180 meters. One of the most important events in the ancient Olympic Games was a footrace exactly one stadion long. The course on which the race was run, including the raised seats from which spectators watched, was also known as a stadion. This word was later borrowed into Latin as stadium. In time, it also came to be used to refer to larger structures in which different kinds of athletic contests were held. That is how the English word stadium is usually used.

More from Merriam-Webster on stadium

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about stadium

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