contest
verb/kənˈtest/
/kənˈtest/
Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they contest | /kənˈtest/ /kənˈtest/ |
| he / she / it contests | /kənˈtests/ /kənˈtests/ |
| past simple contested | /kənˈtestɪd/ /kənˈtestɪd/ |
| past participle contested | /kənˈtestɪd/ /kənˈtestɪd/ |
| -ing form contesting | /kənˈtestɪŋ/ /kənˈtestɪŋ/ |
- contest something to take part in a competition, election, etc. and try to win it
- Three candidates contested the leadership.
- The party has decided not to contest this election.
- Conservatives met to decide who would contest the seat for them at the next election.
- a hotly/fiercely/keenly contested game (= one in which the players try very hard to win and the scores are close)
Extra ExamplesTopics Politicsb2- The election was bitterly contested.
- It turned out to be another hotly contested tournament.
- There were almost 2 000 candidates contesting the remaining 80 positions.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- bitterly
- fiercely
- hotly
- …
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- contest something to formally oppose a decision or statement because you think it is wrong
- to contest a will (= try to show that it was not correctly made in law)
- The divorce was not contested.
- His insurance company decided to contest the claim.
Extra ExamplesTopics Preferences and decisionsb2- Defence lawyers successfully contested the case.
- His views on evolution are strongly contested by other scientists.
- Her son contested the will, stating that she was not of sound mind when she signed it.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- fiercely
- hotly
- strongly
- …
Word Originlate 16th cent. (as a verb in the sense ‘swear to, attest’): from Latin contestari ‘call upon to witness, initiate (by calling witnesses)’, from con- ‘together’ + testare ‘to witness’. The senses ‘wrangle, struggle for’ arose in the early 17th cent., which gave rise to the current noun and verb senses.
Check pronunciation:
contest