Challenge: meaning, definitions and examples

Use 'challenge' when referring to a task or situation that tests someone's abilities. It can also refer to an invitation to compete in a sport or a game.

• Climbing Mount Everest is a huge challenge.
• He challenged her to a chess match.

Use 'contest' to refer to a competition, often involving voting or judged performance, to establish which participant is the best. It can be academic, artistic, or based on other skills.

• He won the essay contest at school.
• The singing contest was the highlight of the evening.

Use 'competition' to describe an event or process in which people try to win something by being better than others. It implies a formal setting with rules.

• The annual dance competition attracts participants from all over the country.
• She has been training hard for the swimming competition.

Use 'duel' when describing a formal fight between two people, typically with weapons, or metaphorically for a direct confrontation or face-off. It can have a negative connotation if implying personal conflict.

• The two men decided to settle their differences with a duel.
• The debate quickly turned into a verbal duel.