fes ‧ ti ‧ val S3 W3 /ˈfestəv ə l, ˈfestɪv ə l/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: Latin festivus ; ⇨ ↑ festive ]
1 . an occasion when there are performances of many films, plays, pieces of music etc, usually happening in the same place every year
festival of
the Swansea Festival of Music and the Arts
2 . a special occasion when people celebrate something such as a religious event, and there is often a public holiday:
Christmas is one of the main festivals in the Christian Calendar.
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COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ have/hold a festival
Tucson had a film festival last month.
▪ celebrate a festival
The festival is celebrated each July.
▪ go to a festival ( also attend a festival formal )
An estimated 20,000 people had attended the festival.
▪ appear/play/speak at a festival (=perform at a festival)
Sting is scheduled to appear at a festival in Amsterdam next month.
▪ take part in a festival (=perform there)
The school choir, which has taken part in the festival since 1980, is rehearsing every day.
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + festival
▪ a film/music/dance/arts festival
The movie won an award at the Cannes Film Festival.
▪ a rock/pop/jazz/folk festival
He's appeared at folk festivals all over Europe.
▪ a literary festival
the Cheltenham Literary Festival.
▪ a beer festival
the famous Munich beer festival
▪ an international festival
an international festival of drama and dance
▪ a cultural festival
A cultural festival will celebrate the traditions of the local people.
■ festival + NOUN
▪ festival events
Many of the festival events are already sold out.
▪ a festival programme (=a series of events at a festival)
This year's festival programme includes musicians from all over the world.
▪ a festival organizer
Festival organizers say they expect more than 50,000 visitors.