noun
arena
uh-REE-nuh/əˈriːnə/
A place for public competition or performance.
Tiered seats surround the basketball court in the empty indoor arena.
Etymology
Latin harena meant sand and then the combat space of an amphitheater, whose floor was sanded to absorb blood. That place-of-contest meaning underlies today's sports and performance venue.
In context
We won First place in the team tournament The whole arena erupted in a deafening cheer.
More examples
- The concert filled the largest arena in town.
- The former journalist entered the political arena.
- New competitors appeared in the commercial arena.
Forms
arena · arenas
Similar words
- stadium
- Usually a larger venue, often open to the sky.
- amphitheater
- An amphitheater particularly suggests tiered seating surrounding a central performance area.