arena

[ uh-ree-nuh ]
See synonyms for arena on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the oval space in the center of a Roman amphitheater for gladiatorial combats or other performances.

  2. a central stage, ring, area, or the like, used for sports or other forms of entertainment, surrounded by seats for spectators: a boxing arena; a circus arena.

  1. a building housing an arena.

  2. a field of conflict, activity, or endeavor: the arena of politics.

Origin of arena

1
1620–30; <Latin (h)arēna sand, sandy place, area sanded for combat

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use arena in a sentence

  • Never do I complain of those vast and free arenas in which others find themselves so ill at ease.

    The Sea | Jules Michelet
  • Two of the fountain basins have been converted into sport arenas, each about eight and one-half acres in extent.

  • The grim arcades of these great Roman arenas are still full of suggestion.

    The Automobilist Abroad | M. F. (Milburg Francisco) Mansfield
  • She had lived a long time, had occupied a front bench overlooking one of the world's chief arenas of action.

  • He had, he says, “fought with beasts (oratorically) in divers arenas.”

    Dickens | Adolphus William Ward

British Dictionary definitions for arena

arena

/ (əˈriːnə) /


noun
    • an enclosure or platform, usually surrounded by seats on all sides, in which sports events, contests, entertainments, etc, take place: a boxing arena

    • (as modifier): arena stage

  1. the central area of an ancient Roman amphitheatre, in which gladiatorial contests and other spectacles were held

  1. a sphere or scene of conflict or intense activity: the political arena

Origin of arena

1
C17: from Latin harēna sand, place where sand was strewn for the combats

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012