“I played in the championship last weekend — there were 32 of us.”
Usage Entry 1384 / 1605 60-second read
Championship vs. Tournament
A title competition with a single winner versus an organised series of matches.
The comparisoni
“I played in the tournament last weekend — there were 32 of us. A tournament is a series of matches. A championship is what the tournament awards (or a competition for a specific title).”
The ruleii
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TOURNAMENT = format. CHAMPIONSHIP = title.
A TOURNAMENT is the structured series of matches itself — knockout, round-robin, or hybrid. A CHAMPIONSHIP is the title at stake (or a competition specifically for that title — "the world championship"). Most tournaments crown a champion; the words aren't synonyms.
Memory aidiii
Remember it like this
Tournament is the schedule. Championship is the prize.