compete with others
/kəmˈpiːt wɪð ˈʌðərz/
Meaning
To 'compete with others' means to try to be more successful, faster, better, or more powerful than other people. This can happen in structured environments like sports and business, or in daily life contexts like school or job hunting. The preposition 'with' is the most common, though 'against' is also frequently used.
Examples
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In business, you have to compete with others to win customers.
In business, you have to compete with others to win customers.
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Healthy kids should learn how to compete with others without being bad sports.
Healthy kids should learn how to compete with others without being bad sports.
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She prefers running alone rather than competing with others in a race.
She prefers running alone rather than competing with others in a race.
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To get the scholarship, he had to compete with hundreds of other students.
To get the scholarship, he had to compete with hundreds of other students.
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Instead of competing with others, try to focus on improving your own skills.
Instead of competing with others, try to focus on improving your own skills.
Common Mistakes
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✗ He enjoys to compete with others in online games.
✓ He enjoys competing with others in online games.
The verb 'enjoy' must be followed by a gerund (-ing form), not an infinitive.
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✗ Our company has to compete to other local businesses.
✓ Our company has to compete with other local businesses.
The verb 'compete' collocated with rivals requires the preposition 'with' or 'against', not 'to'.
Related Expressions
Practice
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As a small business, it is hard to ___ with giant corporations.
💡 Use the base form of the verb.
Show answer
compete
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He dislikes ___ with others because it causes him too much stress.
💡 Use the gerund (-ing) form after the verb 'dislike'.
Show answer
competing