contender
a person who competes against others
TRANSLATION
contender = der Herausforderer, der Mitbewerber, der Streiter --- GOOGLE INDEX contender: approximately 36,000,000 Google hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
I really want to try soccer after I retire because I've watched football over the years and I think I could be a good CONTENDER.
(Track star Usain Bolt)
---
Robin van Persie scored a stunning hat-trick — including a goal- of-the-season CONTENDER — as a 3-0 victory over Aston Villa moved United 16 points clear of Manchester City to secure the title with four games to spare.
(The London Times)
(Track star Usain Bolt)
---
Robin van Persie scored a stunning hat-trick — including a goal- of-the-season CONTENDER — as a 3-0 victory over Aston Villa moved United 16 points clear of Manchester City to secure the title with four games to spare.
(The London Times)
Did you
know?
contender
noun
- someone who competes with other people to try to win something
(Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
---
Contender is from the verb contend, which stems from the Old French contender and Latin contendere, meaning "to stretch out, strive after" (com = intensive prefix + tendere = to stretch).
The nature of the word contender lends itself to the world of sports, such as in this headline: Fernando Alonso expects Ferrari to be a title contender in 2012. It nonetheless has practical application outside of sports, like this business headline from Bloomberg News illustrates: Nestle's Nespresso Growth Hit by Swiss Contender Migros (Bloomberg News).
Contender fits in the brutal world of politics as well: "Emma Bonino, former Commissioner in Brussels and fervent pro-European, had been talked about as the strongest contender to be Italy's first female president." (BBC News)
The word contender is also part of Hollywood legend. In the 1954 film classic On the Waterfront, Marlon Brando won the Oscar for best actor for his role as an ex-boxer turned longshoreman who stands up against his corrupt union bosses: Brando is talking to his brother Charley about his missed opportunities to become a champion in the ring:
"You don't understand. I coulda** had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am, let's face it. It was you, Charley."
**coulda = could have
---
SYNONYMS
challenger, competitor, rival
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"Mary is a serious contender for the CEO job."
noun
- someone who competes with other people to try to win something
(Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
---
Contender is from the verb contend, which stems from the Old French contender and Latin contendere, meaning "to stretch out, strive after" (com = intensive prefix + tendere = to stretch).
The nature of the word contender lends itself to the world of sports, such as in this headline: Fernando Alonso expects Ferrari to be a title contender in 2012. It nonetheless has practical application outside of sports, like this business headline from Bloomberg News illustrates: Nestle's Nespresso Growth Hit by Swiss Contender Migros (Bloomberg News).
Contender fits in the brutal world of politics as well: "Emma Bonino, former Commissioner in Brussels and fervent pro-European, had been talked about as the strongest contender to be Italy's first female president." (BBC News)
The word contender is also part of Hollywood legend. In the 1954 film classic On the Waterfront, Marlon Brando won the Oscar for best actor for his role as an ex-boxer turned longshoreman who stands up against his corrupt union bosses: Brando is talking to his brother Charley about his missed opportunities to become a champion in the ring:
"You don't understand. I coulda** had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am, let's face it. It was you, Charley."
**coulda = could have
---
SYNONYMS
challenger, competitor, rival
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"Mary is a serious contender for the CEO job."
