spectator sport
4
2.3
- noun
- /ˈspɛkteɪtər spɔrt/
:
deporte espectador
- The Olympics features various events that are considered spectator sports, drawing large crowds.
- popular spectator sport
- American spectator sport
Or they're too addicted to being a fan of a sports team, even, that's a form of escape sports, watching spectator sports or they're on their phone all the time.
- Or they're too addicted to being a fan of a sports team, even, that's a form of escape sports, watching spectator sports or they're on their phone all the time.
Examples
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Football is a popular spectator sport that attracts millions of fans worldwide.
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Indeed, American presidential elections are a spectator sport for many.
Blog text (3) -
Racing is a spectator sport.
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The reality seems to be that politics has very much become a profitable spectator sport.
Blog text (32) -
American culture values spectator sports, with the drama of the individual sports hero creating his or her own destiny.
Academic text (2013) -
Mud wrestling is definitely a spectator sport.
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Horse racing has long been eclipsed as America's most popular spectator sport.
Blog text (24) -
Baseball, relative to many other spectator sports, allows fans to converse and otherwise socialize with each other.
Academic text (2003) -
The reason for this could be that the most popular spectator sports in the United States are those considered masculine (Messner, 2002).
Academic text (2009) -
Due primarily to the form of the game itself, this opportunity for spectator socialization is strong in baseball relative to other spectator sports, and it remains strong regardless of the setting of the sport.
Academic text (2003)
How Entertaining
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a sport that is entertaining to watch' is directly and compositionally derived from 'spectator' (a person who watches) + 'sport' (an athletic activity). This noun-noun compound follows a straightforward, cross-linguistically common logic, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Spectator sport may come from the clear image of a sport played for many spectators in a big stadium, where people come mainly to watch and cheer. That's why it now means an activity that is exciting 'to watch' and attracts large crowds.