rival

UK:*UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈraɪvəl/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/ˈraɪvəl/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(rīvəl)

Inflections of 'rival' (v): (⇒ conjugate)
When both "l" and "ll" forms exist, spellings with a double "l" are correct, but rare, in US English, while those with a single "l" are not correct in UK English.
rivals
v 3rd person singular
rivalling
v pres p (Mainly UK)
rivaling
v pres p (US)
rivalled
v past (Mainly UK)
rivaled
v past (US)
rivalled
v past p (Mainly UK)
rivaled
v past p (US)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025
ri•val /ˈraɪvəl/USA pronunciation   n., adj., v., -valed, -val•ing or (esp. Brit.) -valled, -val•ling. 
n. [countable]
  1. one who seeks to achieve the same object or goal as another;
    a competitor:They were rivals for the job but they were still friends.
  2. a person or thing that is almost equal to another:This car has no rival in its class.

adj. [before a noun]
  1. competing or standing in rivalry:rival businesses.

v. [+ object]
  1. to prove to be a worthy rival of:rivaled the others in skill.
  2. to equal (something);
    to match;
    be as good as:The speed of this computer rivals that of much more expensive brands.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025
ri•val  (rīvəl),USA pronunciation n., adj., v., -valed, -val•ing or (esp. Brit.) -valled, -val•ling. 
n. 
  1. a person who is competing for the same object or goal as another, or who tries to equal or outdo another;
    competitor.
  2. a person or thing that is in a position to dispute another's preeminence or superiority:a stadium without a rival.
  3. [Obs.]a companion in duty.

adj. 
  1. competing or standing in rivalry:rival suitors; rival businesses.

v.t. 
  1. to compete with in rivalry: strive to win from, equal, or outdo.
  2. to prove to be a worthy rival of:He soon rivaled the others in skill.
  3. to equal (something) as if in carrying on a rivalry:The Hudson rivals any European river in beauty.

v.i. 
  1. to engage in rivalry;
    compete.
  • Latin rīvālis origin, originally, one who uses a stream in common with another, equivalent. to rīv(us) stream + -ālis -al1
  • 1570–80
rival•less, adj. 
    • 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged contestant, emulator, antagonist. See opponent. 
    • 4.See corresponding entry in Unabridged competitive, opposed.
    • 5.See corresponding entry in Unabridged oppose.
    • 7.See corresponding entry in Unabridged match, emulate.
    • 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged ally.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
rival / ˈraɪvəl/
  1. a person, organization, team, etc, that competes with another for the same object or in the same field
  2. (as modifier): rival suitors, a rival company
  3. a person or thing that is considered the equal of another or others: she is without rival in the field of economics
( -vals, -valling, -valled) ( -vals, -valing, -valed)(transitive)
  1. to be the equal or near equal of: an empire that rivalled Rome
  2. to try to equal or surpass; compete with in rivalry
Etymology: 16th Century: from Latin rīvalis, literally: one who shares the same brook, from rīvus a brook
'rival' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Collocations: a [sports, professional, personal, business] rival, [will, can, should] rival anything (that), a [strong, fierce, tough, former] rival, more...

Forum discussions with the word(s) "rival" in the title:


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