marathon
UK[ˈmærəθən]US[ˈmerəˌθɑːn]
n
A long-distance running race of 42.195 kilometers (26 miles 385 yards).
n
A long-lasting or difficult task or activity requiring great endurance.
Etymology
The word 'marathon' originates from the name of the plain of Marathon in Greece. According to legend, in 490 BCE, a Greek messenger named Pheidippides ran from the battlefield at Marathon to Athens to announce the Greek victory over the Persians, after which he collapsed and died. The modern long-distance race was introduced at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 to commemorate this legendary run. The term's meaning evolved from a specific geographical location to denote the commemorative race, and later, by semantic extension, any very long or arduous task.
Analysis
This is a loanword from Greek, adopted as a single, unanalyzed unit in English. It does not consist of productive English morphemes that can be meaningfully segmented from its current spelling.
Examples
She is training to run her first marathon next spring.
The negotiation session turned into a political marathon, lasting over 24 hours.
The film is a cinematic marathon, with a runtime of nearly four hours.