noun
decathlon
dee-KATH-lon
noun
1
A track and field event made up of ten different disciplines, contested over two days.
"He won Olympic gold in the decathlon, combining sprinting, jumping, and throwing events."
How to Use Decathlon
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA ten-event athletics contest that tests an all-round athlete.
Common pairings
Olympic decathlon
win the decathlon
Word Forms
decathlons plural, decathla plural
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He won Olympic gold in the _____, combining sprinting, jumping, and throwing events.
Etymology
Coined from "dec-" ("ten") + "-athlon," modelled on "pentathlon," for the 1912 Stockholm Olympics.