What does bodybuilding mean?
Bodybuilding is the practice of systematically developing the body's muscles through progressive resistance training — typically with weights — combined with a carefully managed diet. Its goal is to increase muscle size, symmetry, and definition, producing a visibly sculpted physique. For some participants it is simply a fitness regimen pursued for health, confidence, and appearance; for others it is a formal competitive sport in which athletes pose on stage before judges who assess muscularity, conditioning, and presentation. The word also names the wider subculture surrounding this pursuit, including its gyms, publications, federations, and figures such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, who brought the sport mainstream visibility. Related terms include 'bodybuilder', meaning a person who practises the sport, and 'natural bodybuilding', which refers to competition without performance-enhancing drugs. Bodybuilding should not be confused with Olympic weightlifting, which measures raw lifting ability rather than physique. As a term it is uncountable and appears in both casual conversation about gym routines and formal writing about sport and athletic training.
nounThe sport or activity of developing one's muscles through systematic weight training and diet in order to build a highly defined, muscular physique, typically for competitive display.
- The activity or sport of developing the body's musculature through resistance exercise and nutrition, often for competition or aesthetic display.
- More broadly: the practice of regular strength training aimed at increasing muscle mass and definition, whether or not competitively.
"She took up bodybuilding in her twenties and went on to win several regional titles."
"He trains five days a week and credits bodybuilding with giving him discipline that carries over into his work."
"Natural bodybuilding competitions test athletes for performance-enhancing drugs to keep the field fair."
'Bodybuilding' is an uncountable (mass) noun and has no plural form. To refer to multiple varieties or instances, use constructions like 'forms of bodybuilding' or count the events separately.
"Different forms of bodybuilding place different emphasis on size versus symmetry."
Bodybuilding's most famous champion, Arnold Schwarzenegger, used the sport as a springboard to become a Hollywood star and governor of California — proof that muscles can open more doors than doors themselves.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of bodybuilding
The word 'bodybuilding' combines 'body' with 'building' — from the verb 'to build', which derives from Old English 'byldan' ('to construct a dwelling'), itself rooted in 'bold' ('house'). The compound emerged in the late nineteenth century alongside the rise of organised physical-culture movements, when strongmen and physical educators began promoting deliberate muscle development as a disciplined practice rather than incidental labour. It gained international currency through early twentieth-century physique competitions and has remained the standard English term for the sport since.
Related word forms
How bodybuilding is actually used
Bodybuilding is an uncountable noun used for both the competitive sport and general muscle-building practice. It carries connotations of dedication and physical discipline; 'competitive bodybuilding' specifically refers to judged contests. In everyday speech it overlaps with 'lifting' or 'working out', but those terms are broader and not necessarily focused on physique development.
Easily confused with bodybuilding
Weightlifting is the Olympic sport of lifting maximum weight in two specific lifts (snatch and clean and jerk), whereas bodybuilding focuses on shaping and displaying muscular physique rather than on how much is lifted.