festival

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festival

/ˈfɛstɪvəl/ UK
[ˈfɛstɪvl̩] UK
/ˈfɛstəvəl/ US
[ˈfɛstəvl̩] US
/ˈfɛstɪvəl/ US
[ˈfɛstɪvl̩] US
/ˈfestəvəl/ Australia
[ˈfestəvl̩] ~ [ˈfe̞stəvl̩] Australia
/ˈfestəvəl/ New Zealand
[ˈfe̝stəvl̩] ~ [ˈfɪstəvl̩] New Zealand

Where it comes from

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”).

adjective more festival · most festival · feastiuall

Pertaining to a feast or feast day; festive. (Now only as the noun used attributively.) the temple of the Gods […] / Whom all the people decke with girlands greene, / And honour in their festiuall resort […]

noun festivals · feastiuall

countable, uncountable A feast or feast day. All your males are to appear three times a year before the Lord your God in the place He chooses: at the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks, and the Festival of Booths. No one is to appear before the Lord empty-handed.
countable, uncountable 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.
countable, uncountable In mythology, a set of celebrations in the honour of a god.
Caribbean, Jamaica, uncountable Fried cornbread.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: fete, fiesta, feast, festive, gala, fest, shindig, celebrate, celebration, fair, pageant, birthday, get-together, jamboree, wedding, chit

Translations

Every language

noun event or community gathering

Español	festival
한국어	축제 chukje, 축일 chugil
日本語	祭り matsuri, 祭典 saiten, 祝祭 shukusai
中文	節慶 /节庆 jiéqìng, 節日 /节日 jiérì, 節 /节 jié, 會演 /会演 huìyǎn, 匯演 /汇演 huìyǎn
हिन्दी	त्योहार tyohār, जश्न jaśn, उत्सव utsav, पर्व parv, मेला melā
Kiswahili	tamasha
Português	festival
Français	festival, fête
Deutsch	Festival, Fest
Italiano	festival, mostra, rassegna, sagra, festivale
Ελληνικά	φεστιβάλ festivál
Română	festival
Русский	фестива́ль festiválʹ, пра́здник prázdnik, пра́зднество prázdnestvo
Tiếng Việt	ngày hội, đại hội liên hoan, hội diễn, lễ hội, lễ tết
العربية	عِيد ʕīd, مَهْرَجَان mahrajān
עברית	פֶסטִיבָל festivál, חַג khag

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MLA

"festival." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/festival. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

festival. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/festival

Chicago

"festival." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/festival.

BibTeX

@misc{festival_2026,
  title = {festival},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/festival},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}