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festival

festival

315 1.0
A time when people gather to celebrate with food and fun
  • noun
  • /ˈfɛstəvəl/
: fiesta
  • Every autumn, we celebrate the harvest with a festival that includes games, food stalls, and parades.
  • annual festival
  • religious festival
  • Christmas festival

It was the fish festival at at MSG.

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Examples

  • We've got the Buzzing Bee Festival back in Krakow.

  • I am at a vegan festival here in Seoul.

  • And with that moment, of course, the Winter Festival would end.

  • So The thing is, the whole festival is like one big party.

  • Come on, go to the festival with me.

  • So that is a huge festival here in Austin, Great fun.

  • Well, we have an owl festival in a couple of weeks.

  • Every summer, Belfast used to have a poultry festival with rides and activities in the city park.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • Tomorrow, June 6, the yoyama festival is held in Gion.

  • We first went to the Crawfish and Oyster Festival over at Piedmont Park.

Synonyms

party
vsfestival
∞ 1.0

An event where people meet to celebrate, eat, and have fun

covers larger or traditional periods of communal celebration and rituals
fest
vsfestival
  • Informal
81 3.1

A public party with music, food, and events

is a period marked by gatherings and shared meals for an occasion
carnival
vsfestival
67 2.8

A public festival with parades, music, and dancing in the streets

is any period of gatherings and celebrations not only large street parades
festivity
vsfestival
65 3.5

A happy public celebration with music and decorations

focuses on the whole period of gatherings and shared traditional meals
fiesta
vsfestival
22 4.8

A lively outdoor party with music, dancing, and food

is broader not confined to one regional music or outdoor form
feast day
vsfestival
7 3.7

A day for special celebration and big meals, often for religious or cultural reasons

is broader covering many traditions and secular occasions too
festa
vsfestival
1 7.6

A public celebration with music, dancing, and special food

is broader and not limited to specific cultural or religious customs
fete day
vsfestival
1 6.7

A day to celebrate with music, food and games

is a period of gatherings honoring events or traditions with shared meals

Antonyms

96 3.9

A period after someone dies when people show deep sadness

Compounds

96 2.3

An event where people watch a set of films, often with first showings and awards

A celebration held once a year with special activities and traditions

10 2.7

A music event where jazz musicians play live over several days

A community celebration that marks the end of the harvest with food and music

A public event held each summer with music, food, and activities

A public celebration with decorative light displays and lanterns

An event that celebrates a community's traditions, music, dance, food, and art

A public event where people celebrate their faith

An event where writers read, talk about, and sign books

A celebration from old religions before Christianity that marks seasonal events with dancing or bonfires

An event that shows many tulips, with gardens and parades

An eight-day Jewish holiday celebrating the Temple in Jerusalem being made holy again by lighting a menorah

A celebration at a church with food, music, and a special service

A local celebration where many people take part in traditional dances and events

8.2

A festival that celebrates the traditions of Malayalam-speaking people

A festival that celebrates different cultures with music, food, and art

A very rich, showy party linked to the Roman emperor Heliogabalus

How Celebratory

carnival
96 2.7
celebration
501 1.0
festival
315 1.0
observance
  • Formal
11 4.7
gathering
163 1.0

Surface Forms

festival singular
festivals plural

Etymology

Festival comes from the old Latin word festum, which means 'feast' or a day of celebration. Think of a feast, where people meet, eat, and enjoy each other — that is why a festival is a time for gatherings, celebrations, and often feasting.