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glad·i·a·tor

(glădē-ā′tər)

1. A person, usually a professional combatant, a captive, or a slave, trained to entertain the public by engaging in mortal combat with another person or a wild animal in the ancient Roman arena.

2. A person engaged in a controversy or debate, especially in public; a disputant.

3. Sports A professional boxer.

[Middle English, from Latin gladiātor, from gladius, sword, of Celtic origin; akin to Old Irish claideb.]

glad′i·a·tori·al (-ə-tôrē-əl) adj.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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