Agon

Pronunciation

• RP IPA: /æɡɒn/
• US IPA: /æɡɑn/

Origin

From Latin agōn, from Ancient Greek ἀγών ("contest").

Noun

1. A struggle or contest; conflict; especially between the protagonist and antagonist in a literary work.
2. An intellectual conflict or apparent competition of ideas.“Freud's originality stemmed from his aggression and ambition in his agon with biology” (Harold Bloom).
3. A contest in ancient Greece, as in athletics or music, in which prizes were awarded.
4. A two-player boardgame played with a hexagonally-tiled board, popular in Victorian times. Also known as queen's guard.

Related terms

• Agonies
• agony
• agonism
• antagonism

Anagrams

• Gaon
• Goan