short for Olympic games, a series of international amateur sports contests that occur every four years. The games originated in ancient Greece, when they were held on the plain of Olympia at fouryear intervals from 776 b.c. into the fourth century a.d. They were revived in the late 1800s with goals of peace and fellowship modeled on those of the ancient Olympics, but with many more events. —9th ACC Volume 1 Approved Glossary