Meaning & use
sprinter
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountablesport
An athlete who competes in short, fast races, usually up to 400 meters.
Grammar: Countable: a sprinter, two sprinters.
Patterns
- a sprinter runs
- compete as a sprinter
She is a sprinter who specializes in the 100 meters.
The sprinter exploded out of the starting blocks.
Sprinters need explosive power more than long-distance runners do.
nouncountable
A person or animal that runs or moves very fast for a short time.
Grammar: Countable: used for people or animals in general.
Patterns
- be a sprinter
- a natural sprinter
He is a sprinter on the basketball court, always fast on the break.
The cheetah is a natural sprinter, not built for long chases.
Word forms
| plural | sprinters |
|---|
Common combinations
- world-class sprinter
- The world-class sprinter broke the national record.
- Olympic sprinter
- The Olympic sprinter trains six days a week.
- sprinter's speed
- The winger used his sprinter's speed to beat the defender.
Synonyms and how they differ
- runner
- Runner is a general word for anyone who runs; a sprinter specifically races short distances.
- dash man
- Dash man is an informal, older term for a sprinter, less common today.
Opposites
Word family
- sprint verb
- To run at full speed for a short distance.
- sprinting noun
- The sport or activity of racing short distances.
Commonly confused: sprinter or printer?
sprinter vs printer
A printer is a machine that prints; a sprinter is a fast runner. They sound similar but are unrelated.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'sprinter' correctly?
Choose one answer.
A sprinter races short distances like 100 meters, not marathons or unrelated tasks. The other options confuse the word with a long-distance runner or a different meaning entirely.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sprinter”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.