I. med ‧ al 1 /ˈmedl/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Language: French ; Origin: médaille , from Old Italian medaglia 'coin of half value, medal' , from Late Latin medialis 'middle' , from Latin medius ; ↑ medium 2 ]
a flat piece of metal, usually shaped like a coin, that is given to someone who has won a competition or who has done something brave:
She won a gold medal at the last Olympics.
The two boys were awarded medals for bravery.
⇨ deserve a medal at ↑ deserve (3)
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ win a medal
They won a medal at the Chelsea Flower Show.
▪ take a medal (=win a medal)
German runner Stephan Freigang took the bronze medal.
▪ get a medal ( also receive a medal formal )
She received a medal from the Society of Arts.
▪ give somebody a medal
He was given a medal for his courageous actions.
▪ be awarded a medal
The book was awarded the Carnegie Medal.
■ ADJECTIVES
▪ a gold medal (=for first place)
He won the gold medal in Athens in 2004.
▪ a silver medal (=for second place)
She was awarded the silver medal for the 100 metres.
▪ a bronze medal (=for third place)
Morrell took the bronze medal in the long jump.
■ medal + noun
▪ a medal winner
Johnson was a silver medal winner at the Olympic Games.
II. medal 2 BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle medalled , present participle medalling British English , medaled , medaling American English ) [intransitive]
to win a medal at a competition, especially at the Olympic Games
medal in
Germany has the potential to medal in gymnastics this year.