MARATHON

Meaning

A 42.195-kilometre (26-mile-385-yard) road race.

Etymology

Origin: Ancient Greek

Etymology tree Pre-Greekbor.? Ancient Greek μάραθον (márathon) Ancient Greek -ών (-ṓn) Ancient Greek Μαραθών (Marathṓn)lbor. French marathonubor. English marathon From French marathon, coined in 1894 by linguist Michel Bréal for the first modern time Olympic Games after Ancient Greek Μαραθών (Marathṓn), a town northeast of Athens. Phidippides the Greek ran the distance from Marathon to Athens to deliver a message regarding the Battle of Marathon. The modern sport of marathon running is based on a run approximately the same distance. The toponym itself comes from μάραθον (márathon, “fennel”) and refers to the prevalence of the plant in the area.

Synonyms & Antonyms

NYT Puzzle Appearances

No published puzzle dates on file for this word yet. It is part of the official NYT Spelling Bee word list for 2019.