Added 9 October 2026
festival
/ˈfɛstɪvəl/ adjective
In Latin: feria, festum, festivitas Wiktionary
adjective Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about festival at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
- Pertaining to a feast or feast day; festive.
noun
- A feast or feast day, now especially a special event or series of events celebrating such occasions.
-
An event or series of special events centred on the celebration or promotion of some theme or aspect of the community, often held at regular intervals.
The Reading and Leeds festivals take place on the August bank holiday.
- In mythology, a set of celebrations in the honour of a god.
Origin
From Middle English festival (adjective), from Old French festival (“festive”), from Late Latin fēstīvālis, from Latin fēstīvus (“festive”). By surface analysis, festive + -al. Displaced native Old English frēols. The noun is shortened from festival day, from Middle English festival dai, festiuall day (“feast day, festival”).
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)