Origin: Latin suffix -tion
Competition has 5 different meanings across 1 category:
a business relation in which two parties compete to gain customers
"business competition can be fiendish at times"
an occasion on which a winner is selected from among two or more contestants
"The local science fair was held as a competition where students presented their projects to have a winner selected by the judges."
the act of competing as for profit or a prize
"the teams were in fierce contention for first place"
the contestant you hope to defeat
"he had respect for his rivals"
"he wanted to know what the competition was doing"
The action of competing.
"The intense competition between the two runners made it difficult for anyone to predict who would win the race."
In plain English: Competition is when people try to beat each other to win something.
"The local soccer team faced tough competition from several other clubs during the playoffs."
Usage: Use "competition" to refer to the act of striving against others to achieve a goal or win an award. It describes the event itself rather than the people involved, who are competitors.
The word "competition" entered English from the French compétition, which originally meant a contest or rivalry. It ultimately traces back to the Latin verb competere, formed by combining con- (together) and petere (to seek), literally meaning "to strive together."