What does "champion" mean?
An ongoing winner in a game or contest.
Champion
/ˈt͡ʃæm.pi.ən/ adj, name, noun, verb
adj, name, noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An ongoing winner in a game or contest.
- Grammar: champion is listed as adj, name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: a per se, abettor, ace, ace.
- Useful contrasts: challenger, critic, detractor.
- Usage evidence: The Japanese World Cup champion team came back home flushed with victory.
How to use "champion"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "champion" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "champion" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "champion" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "champion" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "champion" is acting as adj, name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "a per se" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "champion", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An ongoing winner in a game or contest.
"The defending champion is expected to defeat his challenger."
- 2 someone who is dazzlingly skilled in any field wordnet
- 3 Someone who is chosen to represent a group of people in a contest.
"Barcelona is eligible to play in FIFA Club World Cup as the champion of Europe."
- 4 someone who fights for a cause wordnet
- 5 Someone who fights for a cause or status.
"Emmeline Pankhurst was a champion of women's suffrage."
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 someone who has won first place in a competition wordnet
- 7 Someone who fights on another's behalf.
"champion of the poor"
- 8 a person who backs a politician or a team etc. wordnet
- 9 A particularly notable member of a plant species, such as one of great size.
"Pictured above is an actual photograph of a Regal Lily that famed all over the world. It's a champion plant—because in one season it produced a total of 89 blooms from one bulb, an amazing record among lilies."
Verb
- 1 To promote, advocate, or act as a champion for (a cause, etc.). transitive
"While obviously championing the Bluebell [Railway], Beardmore is keen for the 'big railway' to consider utilising what preserved railways can provide."
- 2 protect or fight for as a champion wordnet
- 3 To challenge. obsolete, transitive
Adjective
- 1 Acting as a champion; having defeated all one's competitors. attributive, not-comparable
"a champion bodybuilder"
- 2 Excellent; beyond compare. attributive, not-comparable
- 3 Excellent; brilliant; superb; deserving of high praise. British, Ireland, dialectal, not-comparable, predicative
""That rollercoaster was champion," laughed Vinny."
Adjective
- 1 holding first place in a contest wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
- 2 A village in Vulcan County, Alberta, Canada.
- 3 A place in the United States:; A ghost town in California.
- 4 A place in the United States:; A township and unincorporated community therein, in Marquette County, Michigan.
- 5 A place in the United States:; A township in Wilkin County, Minnesota.
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 A place in the United States:; A census-designated place in Chase County, Nebraska.
- 7 A place in the United States:; A town and hamlet in Jefferson County, New York.
- 8 A place in the United States:; A township in Trumbull County, Ohio.
- 9 A place in the United States:; An unincorporated community in the town of Green Bay, Brown County, Wisconsin.
Antonyms
Example
"The Japanese World Cup champion team came back home flushed with victory."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "champion"?
Common synonyms include: a per se, abettor, ace, ace, activist, adept.
How do you use "champion" in a sentence?
The Japanese World Cup champion team came back home flushed with victory.
How do you pronounce "champion"?
Pronounced /ˈt͡ʃæm.pi.ən/.
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *kh₂em-der. Proto-Indo-European *kh₂ém-po-s Proto-Italic *kampos Latin campusbor. Frankish *kamp Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Germanic *-janą Frankish *-jan Frankish *kampijan Proto-Germanic *-jô Frankish *-jō Frankish *kampijōbor. Medieval Latin campiō Old French champiunbor. Middle English champioun English champion From Middle English champioun, from Old French champion, from Medieval Latin campio (“combatant in a duel, champion”), from Frankish *kampijō (“fighter”), from Proto-West Germanic *kampijō (“combat soldier”), a derivative of Proto-West Germanic *kampijan (“to battle, to campaign”), itself a derivative of Proto-West Germanic *kamp (“battlefield, battle”), ultimately a borrowing in West-Germanic from Latin campus (“a field, a plain, a place of action”). By surface analysis champ + -ion. Cognate with Old English cæmpa, cempa (“soldier, warrior, champion”), Old High German kempfeo, kempfo (“fighter, warrior, champion”), whence archaic German Kempfe (“fighter”).