Stadium
WordNet
noun
(1) A large structure for open-air sports or entertainments
WiktionaryText
Etymology
From stadium a measure of length, a race course (commonly one-eighth of a Roman mile; translated in early English Bibles by furlong), from , especially the track at Olympia, which was one stadium in length. The Greek word may literally mean fixed standard of length (from , from PIE base *sta- to stand, cf. Dutch staan), or it may be from spadion, from span to draw up, pull with form inflection by stadios.
Noun
- A Greek measure of length, being the chief one used for itinerary distances, also adopted by the Romans for nautical and astronomical measurements, equal to 600 Greek or 625 Roman feet, or 125 Roman paces, or to 606 feet, 9 inches.
- Hence, a race course, especially, the Olympic course for foot races.
- A venue where sporting events are held.
- A kind of telemeter for measuring the distance of an object of known dimensions, by observing the angle it subtends.
- In surveying, a graduated rod used to measure the distance of the place where it stands from an instrument having a telescope, by observing the number of the graduations of the rod that are seen between certain parallel wires (stadia wires) in the field of view of the telescope.