PF

en-noun

PF (countable and uncountable, plural PFs)

(basketball) Initialism of personal foul.

(basketball) Initialism of power forward.

Coordinate term: PA

The Giants and Commanders have the same record after 13 games each. However, Washington has control of third place in the NFC East due to a better PF/PA record in comparison to the Giants.

2022 December 14, “NFL Playoff picture Week 15: Are the New York Giants still in contention for the postseason?”, in Sportskeeda, archived from the original on 2022-12-17:

(American football, fantasy football) Initialism of points for.


battery mate

battery mates (plural)
batterymate (alternative)

(baseball) One who plays in the same battery, either the pitcher or the catcher.


sac fly

(baseball) A sacrifice fly, a fly out which allows a runner to advance a base.


slugging average

slugging average (plural slugging averages)

(baseball) A statistic which compares the total number of bases achieved by a batter over that batter's number of at bats.


slugging percentage

slugging percentage (plural slugging percentages)


dibbly-dobbler

Sri Lanka's seamers, like their dibbly-dobblers of yesteryear, gave the speedometer a day off, their deliveries rarely touching 80mph.

2006 May 11, Charlie Austin, “Sri Lanka's defective Plan B: What went wrong for Sri Lanka on the first day at Lord's”, in Cricinfo, archived from the original on 2016-05-07:


scissor kick

There were few complains[complaints] from Arteta or his players when Vieira was dismissed for a reckless challenge on Brownhill, but Zinchenko's scissor kick nine minutes earlier had all but ended Burnley's hopes of salvaging a point.

2023 November 11, Matthew Howarth, “Arsenal 3-1 Burnley”, in BBC Sport:


billiard table

(sports, billiards, snooker) A heavy felt-covered table fitted with six pockets along the perimeter used in the games of pool, billiards or snooker.


hit someone for six

en-verb

hit someone for six (third-person singular simple present hits someone for six, present participle hitting someone for six, simple past and past participle hit someone for six)

hits someone for six (present singular third-person)
hitting someone for six (participle present)
hit someone for six (participle past)
hit someone for six (past)
knock someone for six (alternative)

From cricket, where hitting the ball over the boundary without it bouncing scores six runs, the maximum for one shot.

(cricket) To score six points against (a bowler) by hitting the ball over the boundary.


hit a six

hit a six (third-person singular simple present hits a six, present participle hitting a six, simple past and past participle hit a six)

hits a six (present singular third-person)
hitting a six (participle present)
hit a six (participle past)
hit a six (past)

(cricket) To hit the ball hard enough to go out of the boundary of the field without touching the ground, thereby scoring the maximum of six runs


scrummage

(rugby) An ordered formation of forwards, typically bending down, binding to one another with their arms, and pushing opponents shoulder to shoulder, in which each side aims to gain control of the ball; a scrum.


scrummage

scrummage (third-person singular simple present scrummages, present participle scrummaging, simple past and past participle scrummaged)

scrummages (present singular third-person)
scrummaging (participle present)
scrummaged (participle past)
scrummaged (past)

(rugby) To engage in an ordered formation of forwards in which each side aims to gain control of the ball, as described above.


throwdown

throwdowns (plural)
throw-down (alternative)

Deverbal from throw down. Fight and music senses from earlier idiom throw down the gauntlet (“issue a challenge”).


pair of spectacles

en-noun

pair of spectacles (plural pairs of spectacles)

(cricket) Synonym of pair (“score of zero runs in both innings”)


(American football) A player for the San Francisco 49ers, an NFL team.


hangtime

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(skateboarding, American football) The length of time something can stay in the air.


drop punt

Australian rules football
Australian rules football

(Australian rules football, rugby) A kick made by dropping the ball and kicking it before it touches the ground.


Anfield

Possibly from Middle English hange + feld, field (see field).

(soccer) A football stadium within the area, home of Liverpool Football Club.

(soccer, by extension) Liverpool Football club itself.


cross check

(ice hockey, lacrosse) An illegal maneuver whereby a player hits and pushes another player with their stick while holding it stick with both hands. Illegal in hockey when no part of the hockey stick is touching the ice surface; illegal in lacrosse when the opposing player is touched by the portion of the stick between the player's hands, when those hands are farther apart than the shoulders.

càrrega amb l'estic

illegal maneuver in ice hockey and lacrosse


student body

student body left

student body right

(American football slang) A football play in which most of the players run to one side of the field.


FCB

(soccer) Initialism of FC Barcelona, a famous Spanish sports club from Barcelona, best known for its football (soccer) section; from Catalan FCB (“Futbol Club Barcelona”).

FC Barcelona

(soccer) Initialism of FC Bayern Munich, a famous German football (soccer) team from Munich.


VOR

VOR (countable and uncountable, plural VORs)

video operation room
w:Video assistant referee

video assistant referee
video assistant referee

association football
association football

(soccer) Initialism of video operation room, part of the set-up for the video assistant referee (VAR) in association football.


hung up

en-adj

hung up (comparative more hung up, superlative most hung up)

more hung up (comparative)
most hung up (superlative)

Snap throw to first, and they’ve got Sanchez hung up.

(baseball, of a runner, not comparable) In a position such that the path to the desired base is blocked by a fielder holding the ball; caught in a rundown.


hook shot

(basketball) A shot in which the offensive player gently throws the ball with a sweeping motion of his arm in an upward arc with a follow-through which ends over his head.

(cricket) A type of shot played by swinging the bat in a horizontal arc, hitting the ball high in the air to the leg side, often played to balls which bounce around head height; a hook.

(cricket) Synonym of hook (“shot played by swinging the bat in a horizontal arc, hitting the ball high in the air to the leg side”)


flutterball

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(baseball) A type of pitch; knuckleball.


organized baseball

(baseball) Major League Baseball and its associated minor leagues. This does not include amateur leagues, most professional international leagues, the former Negro Leagues, and independent leagues.


knucklecurve

(baseball) A type of pitch with characteristics of both a curveball and a knuckleball.


ghostball

(baseball) A type of pitch; the knuckleball.


stickhandle

en-verb

stickhandle (third-person singular simple present stickhandles, present participle stickhandling, simple past and past participle stickhandled)

stickhandles (present singular third-person)
stickhandling (participle present)
stickhandled (participle past)
stickhandled (past)

Kovalev regained possession of the puck and stickhandled at full speed into neutral-zone open ice.

2008 April 17, Dave Stubbs, “Lots of life left in Bruins”, in The Gazette, Montreal, retrieved 2008-05-13:

(transitive, intransitive, ice hockey, field hockey, lacrosse) To maintain individual possession of the puck or ball by controlling it with movements of one's stick, especially to do so in a skillful manner.


stickhandling

(ice hockey, field hockey, lacrosse) Skillful manipulation of the puck or ball with a player's stick, allowing the player to maintain control of the puck or ball.


court sense

(basketball) A player's knowledge of all that is occurring in the game.


superteam

superteams (plural)
super team (alternative)
super-team (alternative)

Cleveland Cavaliers
Golden State Warriors
LeBron James
Miami Heat

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Any well-respected or highly successful team (in any of several contexts)

(sports, chiefly basketball) A team composed of three or more high-caliber players, especially one assembled by free agency or trades rather than by drafting.


goalscorer

goalscorers (plural)
goal scorer (alternative)
goal-scorer (alternative)

At the other end, goalscorer Krohn-Dehli's 20-yard strike brought a fine stop from Stekelenburg.

2012 June 9, Owen Phillips, “Euro 2012: Netherlands 0-1 Denmark”, in BBC Sport:

(soccer) A person who scores a goal, or scores goals


pull the string

pull the string (third-person singular simple present pulls the string, present participle pulling the string, simple past and past participle pulled the string)

pulls the string (present singular third-person)
pulling the string (participle present)
pulled the string (participle past)
pulled the string (past)

(baseball) To throw an off-speed pitch, a change up, to cause the hitter to swing early and miss.


FBS

w:NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision

(American football) Initialism of Football Bowl Subdivision.


Boot Hill

(cricket, slang) The position of short leg.


lappa

From English lap (“a stroke somewhere between a pull and a sweep”).

When the ball bounced, the open stance was a good preliminary position from which to play the cross-batted swipe or lappa.

2010, Mukul Kesavan, Keshwani Mukul, Men in White (page 12)


backlift

(cricket) The lifting of the bat in preparation for hitting the ball.


hit one out of the ballpark

hit one out of the ballpark (third-person singular simple present hits one out of the ballpark, present participle hitting one out of the ballpark, simple past and past participle hit one out of the ballpark)

hits one out of the ballpark (present singular third-person)
hitting one out of the ballpark (participle present)
hit one out of the ballpark (participle past)
hit one out of the ballpark (past)
hit one out of the ball park (alternative)
knock one out of the ballpark (alternative)
knock one out of the ball park (alternative)
hit one out of the park (alternative)
knock the ball out of the park (alternative)

(baseball) To hit a fair ball so well that the ball flies over all of the spectators' seats and lands outside the stadium.


swing for the fences

swing for the fences (third-person singular simple present swings for the fences, present participle swinging for the fences, simple past and past participle swung for the fences)

swings for the fences (present singular third-person)
swinging for the fences (participle present)
swung for the fences (participle past)
swung for the fences (past)
swing for the fence (alternative)

Don't swing for the fences unless it's an easy ball; be content with running part way.

(US, baseball, softball) To swing at the ball as hard as possible, with the aim of getting a home run.


agricultural shot

en-noun

agricultural shot (plural agricultural shots)

(cricket) A swing across the line of the ball (resembling a scything motion) played without much technique, often resulting in a chunk of the pitch being dug up by the bat.


Barça

Shortened form of Futbol Club Barcelona, keeping the Catalan spelling rules. Since this football team is a symbol of the city of Barcelona, this word has been associated with the whole city, although it's wrong to use Barça to refer to the city itself; instead, one would use Barna.

(soccer) Clipping of Futbol Club Barcelona.


lay up

en-verb

lay up (third-person singular simple present lays up, present participle laying up, simple past and past participle laid up)

lays up (present singular third-person)
laying up (participle present)
laid up (participle past)
laid up (past)

He takes the pass, he drives, he lays it up and in.

(transitive, basketball) To make a layup with (a basketball)


full-court press

en-noun

full-court press (plural full-court presses)

full-court presses (plural)
full court press (alternative)

(basketball) A coordinated maneuver, involving all team members, to block or interfere with the opposing team's attempt to advance the ball down the playing court, so as to force a turnover or backcourt violation.


five-second rule

five-second rule (plural five-second rules)

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Any rule that allows or prohibits certain behavior for five seconds after some event, especially:

(basketball) A rule that a closely-guarded player cannot hold the ball for more than five seconds without dribbling, passing, rolling, or shooting the ball.

(basketball) A rule that a player who throws in the ball from out of bounds must get rid of it in less than five seconds.


front wall

Because it is a wall and is located at the front of the court.

(squash, racquetball) The main and largest wall in court, located at the front of the world; the wall which the ball must hit in a rally.


back wall

Because it is a wall and is located at the back of the court.

(squash, racquetball) The wall at the back of a racquetball or squash court, directly opposite the front wall.


side wall

side walls (plural)
sidewall (alternative)

Because each of the walls in question is located on a side of the court.

(squash, racquetball) Either of the two parallel walls in a court, perpendicular to the front wall; either of the walls on the side of the court.


TBF

Turkish Basketball Federation
w:Turkish Basketball Federation

(basketball) Initialism of Turkish Basketball Federation.


line break

line breaks (plural)
line-break (alternative)
linebreak (alternative)

Toby Flood replaced Wilkinson at the break and scrum-half Ben Youngs scored almost directly from the restart, spotting a gap down the short side and linking well with Tuilagi down the right flank, and nine minutes later full-back Ben Foden extended England's lead following a bullocking line-break by Tuilagi.

2011 September 24, Ben Dirs, “Rugby World Cup 2011: England 67-3 Romania”, in BBC Sport:

(rugby) a break made through the opposition's defensive line


batsmanship

Although our team lost, we were complimented by everyone on our batsmanship.

(cricket) A skilled or courteous display of skill as a batsman.


bat away

en-verb

bat away (third-person singular simple present bats away, present participle batting away, simple past and past participle batted away)

bats away (present singular third-person)
batting away (participle present)
batted away (participle past)
batted away (past)

(US, baseball, of a batter) To use one's own judgment to aggressively swing at pitches, rather than following a coaches instructions.


bowl-out

(cricket) A series of deliveries at an unguarded wicket at the end of a non-first-class cricket match, used to decide the winner of a drawn match.


change up

change up (third-person singular simple present changes up, present participle changing up, simple past and past participle changed up)

changes up (present singular third-person)
changing up (participle present)
changed up (participle past)
changed up (past)

He changed up on Wilson after three fastballs and struck him out.

(intransitive, baseball) To throw a pitch at a much slower than expected speed.


posterize

posterize (third-person singular simple present posterizes, present participle posterizing, simple past and past participle posterized)

posterizes (present singular third-person)
posterizing (participle present)
posterized (participle past)
posterized (past)

(basketball, slang) To score a slam dunk by leaping over another player.


rollout

rollouts (plural)
roll-out (alternative)

(American football) A play in which a quarterback moves toward the sideline before attempting to pass.


dunk shot

(basketball) A dunk, a shot where the ball is propelled directly downward through the hoop.


OL

(soccer) Initialism of Olympique Lyonnais.


dig out

dig out (third-person singular simple present digs out, present participle digging out, simple past and past participle dug out)

digs out (present singular third-person)
digging out (participle present)
dug out (participle past)
dug out (past)

(transitive, cricket) To block a yorker with the bottom of the bat, at the last second.


pink spot

(snooker) The spot on a snooker table where the pink ball is normally placed.


blue spot

(snooker) The spot on a snooker table where the blue ball is normally placed.


brown spot

en-noun

brown spot (countable and uncountable, plural brown spots)

(snooker, countable) The spot on a snooker table where the brown ball is normally placed.


green spot

(snooker) The spot on a snooker table where the green ball is normally placed.


yellow spot

(snooker) The spot on a snooker table where the yellow ball is normally placed.


object ball

(snooker, billiards) The ball which the cue ball is intended to hit.


openside

opensides (plural)
open side (alternative)

Coordinate term: blindside

(rugby) The space on the side of the pitch with the larger distance between the breakdown/set piece and the touchline.


inside back

(rugby) a back whose primary job is to create space for the outside backs outside him, i.e. the scrum-half, the fly-half and the inside centre.


half-back

But Wales somehow snaffled possession for fly-half Jones to send half-back partner Mike Phillips haring away with Stoddart in support.

2011 February 4, Gareth Roberts, “Wales 19-26 England”, in BBC:


three-quarter back

three-quarter back (plural three-quarter backs)

(rugby) Any of a group of players positioned between the half-backs and the full-backs; consists of the left wing, the inside centre, the outside centre and the right wing


first receiver

(rugby) The first player to receive the ball from a scrum-half. This is often the fly-half, but may be a different player if the fly-half is unavailable, or a forward who will drive.


outside back

(rugby) a back whose primary job it is to exploit space created by the inside backs, i.e. the outside centre, both wingers, and the full back


openside flanker

openside flanker (plural openside flankers)

(rugby) a forward position in rugby union, usually number 7.


scrummager

Their tighthead is a great scrummager, but is not very good in the loose.

(rugby) One who scrummages; usually used in reference to the qualities of front row forwards.


penalty goal

(ice hockey, soccer, rugby) A goal scored from a penalty.


tight five

(rugby) The five forwards who form the front row and the second row in the scrum.


gain line

gain lines (plural)
gainline (alternative)

(rugby) an imaginary line running across the pitch perpendicular to the touchline and passing through the breakdown or set piece. The subsequent phase is said to have passed "over the gain line" if the gain line at the subsequent breakdown is in front of the last, or "behind the gain line" if it is behind.

(American football) Alternative form of line to gain


ribeye

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Watson had a 3-run homer and a 2-run double for a total of five ribeyes on the night.


pull the trigger

en-verb

pull the trigger (third-person singular simple present pulls the trigger, present participle pulling the trigger, simple past and past participle pulled the trigger)

pulls the trigger (present singular third-person)
pulling the trigger (participle present)
pulled the trigger (participle past)
pulled the trigger (past)

The Baggies almost hit back instantly when Graham Dorrans broke from midfield and pulled the trigger from 15 yards but Paul Robinson did superbly to tip the Scot's drive around the post.

2010 December 28, Kevin Darlin, “West Brom 1 - 3 Blackburn”, in BBC:

(soccer, idiomatic, intransitive) To shoot, kick the ball in hope of scoring a goal.


piledriver

piledrivers (plural)
pile driver (alternative)

United did not dwell on the decision and Nani had a left-foot piledriver fended wide by Friedel, who is now the oldest player in Villa's history at 39 years and 259 days.

2011 February 1, Mandeep Sanghera, “Man Utd 3 - 1 Aston Villa”, in BBC:


ground game

en-noun

ground game (countable and uncountable, plural ground games)

Notre Dame, with its option-type quarterback, Tony Rice, is committed to the ground game.

1988 November 26, Mal Florence, “They Take Case to Polls Today USC-Notre Dame Game Could Settle Score for No. 1”, in Los Angeles Times, archived from the original on 2013-06-30, page Sports 3:

(American football, countable) Running with the ball, rather than passing


tice

Possibly from entice, as below, suggesting the bowler's purpose.

Bowlers should practise both toss and tice.

1862, James Picroft, The Cricket-Field, Or The History and the Science of the Game of Cricket, page 120:

The tice is almost a full pitch. If you have a long reach, go in and play forward; if not, however, keep your bat down, and block it.

1863 March 7, “The Complete Guide to the Cricket Field: Chapter III: The Batsman”, in The Boy's Miscellany: An Illustrated Journal of Useful and Entertaining Literature for Youth, volume 1, page 155:

1870 July, The Wykehamist, Number 33, page 1,
Raynor, though somewhat wild, obtained an extraordinary number of wickets for very few runs, his fast "tices" quite puzzling the Eton bats.

1911, Henry Charles Howard Suffolk and Berkshire (Earl of), Hedley Peek, Frederick George Aflalo, The Encyclopaedia of Sport & Games, Volume 1, page 452,
A "yorker" (or "tice") pitches on, or within six inches of, the popping crease; […] .

(cricket, dated) A ball bowled to strike the ground about a bat's length in front of the wicket; a yorker.

yorker

ball bowled to strike the pitch near the batsman's feet


run-and-gun

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(basketball) Alternative form of run and gun


technical foul

(basketball) Any infraction of the rules penalized as a foul which does not involve physical contact during the course of play between players on the court, or is a foul by a nonplayer.


shootaround

shootarounds (plural)
shoot-around (alternative)

The players came to the stadium for the morning shootaround.

(basketball) An informal practice session


returner

(American football) A player who runs back a ball which has been punted or kicked


runback

A fifty yard runback of a punt by Jack Reed in the fourth period gave Bowdoin a 6-0 win over Williams today in a driving rain.

1936 October 18, “Fifty Yard Runback of Punt Gives Bowdoin 6-0 Win Over Williams”, in Hartford Courant, archived from the original on 2013-06-30, page C4:

(American football) The act of returning a kicked ball, such as from a punt or kickoff


pie-chucker

(cricket, informal) A bowler who has no control over the movement of the ball


putback

(basketball) A move in which a player scores a basket immediately after securing an offensive rebound


goaltending

(basketball) A violation which occurs when a player interferes with the movement of the ball that is on its downward path toward the basket or on or within the rim of the basket, or after the ball touched the backboard.


goaltend

en-verb

goaltend (third-person singular simple present goaltends, present participle goaltending, simple past and past participle goaltended)

goaltends (present singular third-person)
goaltending (participle present)
goaltended (participle past)
goaltended (past)

Amazingly, of Fly's first eight shots two are blocked, three go in, and three are goaltended.

2004, Rick Teland, Heaven is a Playground, →ISBN, page 108:

(basketball) To engage in goaltending, interference with the ball on its downward path to the basket

hacer un tapón ilegal

basketball: interference with the ball on its downward path to the basket


outrebound

outrebound (third-person singular simple present outrebounds, present participle outrebounding, simple past and past participle outrebounded)

outrebounds (present singular third-person)
outrebounding (participle present)
outrebounded (participle past)
outrebounded (past)

We outrebounded the other team, but our offense wasn't good enough.


A team

From the letter "A" (indicating the highest rank or quality) + "team".

He was then selected for the South African A team before making his international debut.

NSW all-rounder Moises Henriques has been named captain of the Australia A team to play England in Hobart next week.

(cricket, rugby) A country's reserve team or development squad, comprising the best players not selected in the national team.


frontcourt

frontcourts (plural)
front-court (alternative)

Kelly passes to Mahoney in the frontcourt.

(basketball) The half of the court where a team's offensive basket is located

The team's frontcourt has not been performing this season.

(basketball) The center and forwards of a team


spinner

From Middle English spynnere; equivalent to spin + -er.

2021, Neha Bedi, Sachin Bajaj, The Sardar of Spin
I can ascertain that even in the present era where T20 cricket has redefined spin bowling and spinners have started bowling doosras and teesras and fire the deliveries in, you can expect Bishan Singh Bedi to stick to his original definition, and insist that, 'A spinner is one who turns the ball...'


war daddy

The phrase may have originated with Harold T. White, a coach at Mississippi's Perkinston Junior College in the 1950s.

(slang, American football, US) A player with extraordinary ability and exceptional toughness.


homestand

Two Sarasota pitchers proved easy picking for the St. Petersburg Saints at Waterfront park this afternoon and the locals walked off with the first game of their homestand, 8 to 1.

1926 June 4, “Locals Score Five Runs in One Inning, While Hewitt Holds Invaders Safe”, in Evening Independent, page 8:

(baseball) A series of games played at a team's home field


earned run average

en-noun

earned run average (plural earned run averages)

We can give you passing yardage if you want to talk quarterbacks, or earned-run average if you want to talk pitchers, or goals and assists if you want to talk hockey players, but, alas, professional football linemen, especially on the offensive side of the table, are not easily statisticized.

1992 October, Steve Buckley, “Boss Hog: Jim Lachey is the best offensive lineman in football playing on the best team in football”, in Sport, volume 83, number 10, →ISSN, page 63:

(baseball) A statistic in baseball which equals the number of earned runs allowed per nine innings pitched.


run batted in

(baseball) A run that a given player has caused to be scored by a hit, walk, or sacrifice.


incompletion

incompletion (countable and uncountable, plural incompletions)

From in- + completion or incomplete + -ion

Their strong defense forced three incompletions from the other team.

(countable, American football) A forward pass which is not caught inbounds by the intended receiver.


look off

en-verb

look off (third-person singular simple present looks off, present participle looking off, simple past and past participle looked off)

looks off (present singular third-person)
looking off (participle present)
looked off (participle past)
looked off (past)

I went back to pass, tried to look off the safety, turned and fired it out to Jack. It didn't work. The safety closed on the ball and knocked it down.

2004, Danny Wuerffel with Steve Spurrier and Mike Bianchi, Danny Wuerffel's Tales from the Gator Swamp, page 24:

(transitive, idiomatic, American football) To mislead by directing one's apparent attention away from one's true object of intent.

(intransitive, American football) To look in a way different than the intended direction of play in order to confuse the opposing team.


backcourt

So the Knicks, who began the season with a depleted frontcourt, have muddled through the last six weeks with a depleted backcourt as well.

2009 January 2, Howard Beck, “Knicks Will Continue to Be Walsh’s Work in Progress in 2009”, in New York Times:

(basketball) A team's defensive half of the court; the part of the court where the other team's basket is located, or the guards playing in that area.


midmajor

midmajors (plural)
mid-major (alternative)

(American football) A college not affiliated with a conference that is one of the primary partners in the College Football Playoff

(US, basketball) A conference that is not a major conference


kickoff returner

en-noun

kickoff returner (plural kickoff returners)

(American football) A player on the receiving side whose primary job is to catch the football during a kickoff and carry the ball.


punt returner

(American football) A player on the receiving team whose primary job is to catch the football during a punt and carry the ball.


leg-breaker

leg-breakers (plural)
leg breaker (alternative)
legbreaker (alternative)

Arca performed a similar stunt with a high over-the-top-of-the-ball tackle on Andy Johnson, except he connected. It is what is called a leg-breaker.

2008 December 22, “Mailbox”, in football365.com, retrieved 2009-01-05:

(soccer) A tackle or other on-field maneuver capable of breaking a player's leg.

(soccer) a tackle or other maneuver capable of breaking a player's leg

wejście skutkujące złamaniem nogi rywala

próba odbioru piłki skutkująca złamaniem nogi rywala

Armstrong is a leg-breaker, with eight fielders on the on-side. Probably he would do better if he bowled more at the wicket.

(cricket) A cricketer who bowls leg breaks.

Noble joined Wood, and the pair changed the aspect of affairs, 45 being up before a leg breaker from McGiverin proved too good for Noble's defense.

1894 September 18, “Canadian Cricketers Lead”, in New York Times, retrieved 2009-01-05, page 3:


centre forward

(British spelling, soccer) The most central of the strikers; traditionally the player who makes the kick-off.


friendly match

friendly match (plural friendly matches)

(soccer) A game that has no competitive value; an exhibition match


trequartista

The trequartista is the pivotal role in attack, though it is neither a striker nor a creator, per se, but three-quarters of both those positions.

2013 April 16, Rob Hughes, “After 2 Decades of Creativity: Why Stop Now?”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 2022-11-06:

However, the classic Italian trequartista role, which generally refers to a number 10 playing behind two strikers, was under threat. Arrigo Sacchi's emphasis on a heavy pressing 4-4-2 left no place for a languid trequartista, and therefore players like Baggio were having to prove their worth.

2019, Michael W. Cox, Zonal Marking: The Making of Modern European Football, PublicAffairs, →ISBN:

A tall, skilful trequartista with impeccable technique, he has an eye for the goal, being especially dangerous in the air.

2022 September 28, Marcus Christenson, Steven Bloor, Garry Blight, “Next Generation 2022: 60 of the best young talents in world football”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 2023-01-23:

(soccer) A player who operates between the midfielders and the strikers, acting as a playmaker and creating chances for their team to score.


NBAer

(basketball) Someone who plays in the NBA.


NFLer

(American football) Someone who plays in the NFL.


CFLer

(Canadian football) Someone who plays in the CFL (Canadian Football League).


MLBer

(baseball) Someone who plays in MLB (Major League Baseball).


NPF

National Pro Fastpitch
w:National Pro Fastpitch

(softball) Initialism of The National Pro Fastpitch, the senior softball league in the US.


NLL

National Lacrosse League
w:National Lacrosse League

(lacrosse) Initialism of National Lacrosse League, a lacrosse league in the US.


WNBAer

(basketball) Someone who plays in the WNBA.


fastpitch

(softball) A variety of softball in which the ball may be pitched at faster speed.


repost

en-verb

repost (third-person singular simple present reposts, present participle reposting, simple past and past participle reposted)

reposts (present singular third-person)
reposting (participle present)
reposted (participle past)
reposted (past)

He's starting to learn that when the trap comes to kick it out right away and repost.

2007 January 1, Howard Beck, “Knicks Have a Hard Time Dealing With Rejection”, in New York Times:

(basketball) To post up again; to reset oneself at the post.


buttonhook

Yet the Bears never set up the deep patterns with a turn-in or a buttonhook[…]

1988 January 15, Ted Cox, “The Sports Section”, in Chicago Reader:

(American football) A play in which the receiver runs straight downfield, then turns back toward the line of scrimmage.


buttonhook

buttonhook (third-person singular simple present buttonhooks, present participle buttonhooking, simple past and past participle buttonhooked)

buttonhooks (present singular third-person)
buttonhooking (participle present)
buttonhooked (participle past)
buttonhooked (past)

(American football) To perform the buttonhook play.


slowpitch

slo-pitch (alternative)
slow-pitch (alternative)

(softball) A variety of softball, in which the ball may not be pitched fast.


upcourt

The Wizards took the lead for good when Nick Young blocked Duhon’s layup attempt, then raced upcourt for a 21-foot pull-up jumper.

2009 January 17, Howard Beck, “Up-and-Down Knicks Get More of the Latter in Loss to Wizards”, in New York Times:

(basketball) Toward a team's offensive basket, the basket at which points are scored


bat in

bat in (third-person singular simple present bats in, present participle batting in, simple past and past participle batted in)

bats in (present singular third-person)
batting in (participle present)
batted in (participle past)
batted in (past)

a. 2001, William Harrington, Elliott Roosevelt's Murder at the President's Door: An Eleanor Roosevelt Mystery, 2003 edition, →ISBN, page 55,
In 1927, when Ruth hit sixty home runs, Gehrig had a better batting average and batted in more runs.

(baseball, transitive) To bat so that a runner on base effects (a run).


ball return

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(snooker, pool) A ramp inside the table, down which balls roll so they can be accessed.


foul line

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(basketball) A line from which a player takes a free throw

(baseball, softball) One of the two lines on the edge of a field marking the area inside which a fair ball may be hit.


midtable

Inter Milan[…] allowed midtable Atalanta of Bergamo three goals in the first 33 minutes Sunday and lost only its second league match of the season, 3-1.

2009 January 21, Jack Bell, “Juventus Putting Pressure on Inter”, in New York Times:

(soccer) Of medium rank in the standings, not a top or bottom team.


paceman

The flair for bright batting went against them as they fell easy prey to the Aussie pacemen.

1976, The Statesman, volume 22, page 47:

In the series he bowled 222.5 overs, a considerable number considering Test teams in 1948 could call upon a new ball every 55 overs and Australia had pacemen to burn in Lindwall, Miller, Johnston and Toshack.

2001, Ashley Mallett, Eleven: The Greatest Eleven of the 20th Century, page 100:

Instead he went trout fishing on the Kiewa River in country Victoria, but not before leaving instructions to his pacemen to attack Bradman at every opportunity. Larwood took this to mean plenty of short stuff at the rib cage and head with five men in close catching positions.

2006, Roland Perry, The Ashes: A Celebration, page 136:

VICTORIA captain Cameron White and paceman Ben Hilfenhaus will return to the Australian team for the one-day international against South Africa tomorrow.

2009 January 25, “Cameron White and Ben Hilfenhaus return for Australia”, in Herald Sun:

2008 February 4, Anil Kumble, ‘You need to keep talking’, Outlook, page 45,
Fourteen Australian wickets fell to our pacemen, indicating that they were sticking to the plan.

2009 October, Pratiyogita Darpan, page 763,
South African paceman Andre Nel on March 25, 2009 announced his retirement from international cricket after an eight year career during which he took more than 100 wickets in both forms of the game.

(cricket, Australia, India) A fast bowler; one who specialises in bowling fast.


hardman

FORMER Melbourne Storm hardman Michael Crocker will consider retirement if he is denied a work permit by the British government.

2009 January 25, Peter Badel, “Crocker: I'll quit if I can't go”, in Herald Sun:


special team

(American football) A group of football players with special assignments for plays other than standard offensive and defensive plays, such as those involving kicking.


backrower

Test backrower Crocker, 28, had hinted that he would consider retiring if the three-year English deal fell through.

2009 January 30, AAP, “Crocker's English visa rejected”, in Herald Sun:

(sports, cricket) A reserve player on a team; a member of the back row or back bench


Saints

Still, Saints looked the likeliest to make the breakthrough, and it came when Jonny Evans could only half-clear a long ball and Chaplow took full advantage.

2011 January 29, Ian Hughes, “Southampton 1 - 2 Man Utd”, in BBC:

(soccer) A nickname of Southampton Football Club, a football club from Southampton, England.


hitless

Jones is hitless in the last four games.

(baseball, of a batter) Having failed to make any base hits over a period of time, usually one game.

The team is hitless since the third inning.

(baseball, of a team) Having no hits over a period of time, usually part of one game.


base hit

(baseball) A successful hit in which the batter safely reaches base


halfcourt

The second technical was called after Mayo walked back toward the players gathered at halfcourt.

2007 January 30, Pete Thamel, “A Star Player, a Video and a Suspension”, in New York Times:

(basketball) The middle of the court, at and near the center line

Count 'em, 150 basketball courts, actually halfcourts, will line Columbus Drive July 27-28 for the Bulls' second annual Shoot-the-Bull Three-on-Three Roundball Classic.

1990 July 4, Linda Young, “3-on-3 offers hot aftertaste”, in Chicago Tribune, archived from the original on 2013-12-02, page 3:

(basketball) A basketball court that is half the size of a normal court

There was lots of weird stuff going on with zones and matchups and presses and fastbreaks and ball-deflating halfcourts, but UConn won with defense.

1999 January 24, Michael Arace, “NO. 1 UCONN 62, SETON HALL 47”, in Hartford Courant, archived from the original on 2013-06-30, page E3:

(basketball) A shot taken from the middle of the court


outpitch

outpitch (third-person singular simple present outpitches, present participle outpitching, simple past and past participle outpitched)

outpitches (present singular third-person)
outpitching (participle present)
outpitched (participle past)
outpitched (past)

He beat the Yankees, 4-2, at Yankee Stadium in Game 2, outpitched Whitey Ford in a 1-0 victory in Game 5 in Milwaukee, and then, pitching on two days’ rest because Spahn had the flu, threw a 5-0 shutout at Yankee Stadium in Game 7.

2007 February 7, Richard Goldstein, “Lew Burdette, Masterful Pitcher, Dies at 80”, in New York Times:

(baseball) To pitch better than an opposing pitcher.


basepath

Jackson broke up a potential double play in the 1978 World Series when he froze on the basepaths and turned his hip into a throw.

2007 June 2, Tyler Kepner, “Reconsidering, Torre Admonishes Rodriguez”, in New York Times:

(baseball) The grassless ways around the baseball diamond on which runners advance.

(pesäpallo) The path between two adjacent bases, such as between the first and the second base.


homecourt

homecourts (plural)
home court (alternative)
home-court (alternative)

James made an epic block of a Chris Bosh dunk attempt to rouse a sleepy house and Cleveland went on to seal a victory that improved its homecourt record to a franchise record 23-0.

2009 February 4, Dave Feschuk, “Raptors mere jesters in King James' court”, in Toronto Star:

(basketball) The home court of a basketball team.


pickoff

Zobrist broke for third during Pettitte’s pickoff move, stealing the base when Pettitte threw behind the runner.

2007 April 6, Tyler Kepner, “Pettitte’s Return Lost Amid Sloppy Play”, in New York Times:

(baseball) A play in which a pitcher throws a live ball to a fielder so that the fielder can tag out a baserunner who has moved away from the base


downcourt

Ever since Barnes played with Davis at U.C.L.A., he has been able to throw baseball passes halfway downcourt.

2007 May 13, Lee Jenkins, “Nellie Ball Energizes Warriors and Confounds Opponents”, in New York Times:

(basketball) Toward one's team's offensive basket


flyout

Sosa got Clark to chase a changeup, then retired Stephen Drew on a flyout to the right-field fence.

2007 May 6, Ben Shpigel, “Mets’ Gamble on Sosa Pays Off for One Night”, in New York Times:


homerless

(baseball) Without having scored a homer (home run).


ballclub

ballclubs (plural)
ball club (alternative)
ball-club (alternative)

“I got hurt trying to help the ballclub win ballgames.”

2007 July 4, Todd Jones, “The Links Between Bonds and Griffey End When the Fans React”, in New York Times:


multihomer

BREWERS 3, PHILLIES 2 Ben Sheets (4-2) struck out eight in seven and two-thirds innings, and Gabe Gross hit two bases-empty home runs for the first multihomer game of his career to help visiting Milwaukee end a four-game losing streak.

2007 May 18, The Associated Press, “Red Sox Save Their Bullpen as Tavárez Beats the Tigers”, in New York Times:

(baseball) Having more than one home run in a single game.


pitchout

The only thing that had kept the bases from being loaded was that Zimmer (or someone, but let's give him the credit because it was a tough weekend for him) caught the Dodgers stealing with a pitchout on a hit-and-run.

1988 July 22, Ted Cox, “The Sports Section”, in Chicago Reader:

(baseball) A pitch that is intentionally thrown high and outside of the strike zone in order to prevent a stolen base


ball up

ball up (third-person singular simple present balls up, present participle balling up, simple past and past participle balled up)

balls up (present singular third-person)
balling up (participle present)
balled up (participle past)
balled up (past)

(basketball, intransitive) To play basketball, especially playing well.


sinkerballer

With Putz and closer Francisco Rodríguez aboard, that pitcher — the bridge to the bridge, if you will — assumes extra responsibility, and the Mets are optimistic that Green, a 6-foot-6 sinkerballer, will fill that role.

2009 February 17, Ben Shpigel, “Acquired in J. J. Putz Trade, Sean Green Also Seen as Valuable to Mets”, in New York Times:

(baseball) A pitcher who throws a lot of sinkers (sinking fastballs).


popout

And Ambiorix Burgos loaded the bases […] before inducing a popout in foul territory to end the game.

2007 April 24, David Picker, “Maine Has Last Word in Solving Rockies”, in New York Times:

(baseball) A pop fly that is caught in flight, resulting in an out.


nonpitcher

Sheffield was the only Tigers nonpitcher who did not play in Sunday’s game.

2007 April 23, The Associated Press, “With Only Hitting to Focus on, Sheffield Has Found Himself in an Early Slump”, in New York Times:

(baseball) A player who is not a pitcher and therefore is required to bat


strongside

Bradley might push for playing time right away at the strongside linebacker spot.

2007 May 27, The Associated Press, “For a Rookie Linebacker, It’s Like Going to Work”, in New York Times:

(American football) Of or pertaining to the strongside linebacker position, which typically lines up across from the tight end


wicketless

Vettori paid the price for a wicketless outing in the final one-day international against the West Indies on Tuesday, slipping from first place to second.

2009 January 14, AAP, “Nathan Bracken returns to No.1 in ODI bowling rankings”, in Herald Sun:

(cricket) Having failed to gain a single wicket


linebacking

“He has the ability to play all three linebacking positions and we’re happy to add him to our defense.”

2007 March 27, The Associated Press, “Eagles Boost Defense With Deal for Spikes”, in New York Times:

(American football) Playing as a linebacker


gloveman

The Aussie gloveman hit back yesterday saying the accusations were worse than any wrongdoing he was alleged to have committed.

2009 February 3, Richard Earle, “Btrad Haddin hits back at Daniel Vettori dig”, in Herald Sun, archived from the original on 2009-02-05:


fireballing

Injuries […] will likely keep fireballing prospect Phillippe Aumont from suiting up as well.

2009 January 19, “Canada's hoping to draw on pair of aces for Classic”, in Toronto Star:


comebacker

It's a comebacker past second base for a single.

The pitcher fields the comebacker and throws it to first for the out.

Hendricks was only able to throw 52 pitches, surrendering two runs in 3.2 innings before being forced out of action when Angel Pagan's comebacker hit his right forearm.

The next hitter, Jayson Werth, reached on a broken-bat infield single, and Greg Dobbs walked to load the bases, but Heilman induced a comebacker from Chris Coste to end the rally.

2007 August 29, Ben Shpigel, “Two Hits, One Short and One Far, Beat the Mets”, in New York Times:

(baseball) A batted ball that travels toward the pitcher.


utilityman

utilitymen (plural)
utility man (alternative)

Franco, a 48-year-old utilityman, signed with Atlanta on Wednesday, rejoining the Braves a week after he was cut by the Mets .

2007 July 19, The Associated Press, “Franco Is Back With the Braves”, in New York Times:

(baseball) A player who can play in several different positions


Royal

A habitational surname, shaped by folk etymology, from places in England, Riehale, Righale, Ryhill and Ryall, Old English ryge (“rye”) + hyll (“hill”), and Royle, rā (“roe”) + hyll (“hill”).

(soccer) someone connected with Reading Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


outrush

outrush (third-person singular simple present outrushes, present participle outrushing, simple past and past participle outrushed)

outrushes (present singular third-person)
outrushing (participle present)
outrushed (participle past)
outrushed (past)

[…] the Colts outrushed the Patriots, 93-8, in the second half.

2007 November 2, Judy Battista, “Blame the Colts for the New-Look Patriots”, in New York Times:

(American football, transitive) To rush more than the other team.


clogger

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The sport has always been tough, of course; but [Fifa] became concerned that the pre-eminent teams were those that employed particularly physical players, whose specialty was intimidation. This had commercial implications, though they were never spelled out: if the finesse players were succumbing to the “cloggers” as they were known (“clog” meaning to impede or hamper), then the shape of the sport would change fundamentally, skill being replaced by a more robust style of play in which only the strong would survive.

2010, Ellis Cashmore, Making Sense of Sports, page 314:

[…] I was normally not able to – unless I fouled him – and I usually did. I think from that time Archie reckoned I was a bit of a clogger and I didn't have Dad's or Archie's skills.

2017, Roger Hannah, The School of Hard Knox: The Autobiography of Archie Knox:

(soccer, slang) A physically aggressive player.


baserunning

Zimmer's comment on Martinez's baserunning was that he was "timid" and wouldn't run on the green light.

(baseball) The act of running bases, or a player's skill in doing so


beanball

From bean + ball, from the slang bean (“head”).

(baseball) A pitch deliberately thrown at the head of the batter.


foul territory

en-noun

foul territory (usually uncountable, plural foul territories)

(baseball) The area outside the playing field beyond the first base and third base lines, including the grandstand.


batter's box

batter's box (plural batters' boxes or batter's boxes)

batters' boxes (plural)
batter's boxes (plural)
batters box (alternative)
batters' box (alternative)
batter box (alternative)

(baseball) One of two areas beside home plate in which a batter is required to stand during an at bat.


at bat

catcher interference
catcher interference

(baseball) A final resolution to a batter's turn at the plate which does not result in a walk, a hit by pitch, a sacrifice hit or sacrifice fly, or catcher interference


extra base hit

(baseball) A double, triple, or home run.


force play

(baseball) A play in which a baserunner on first base is required to advance to second base because the batter has become a runner, or a runner on second or third base is required to advance because a runner on a preceding base is so forced.


infield fly

(baseball) A batted ball which is in play and subject to the infield fly rule.


infield fly rule

infield fly rule (plural infield fly rules)

(baseball) A rule providing that a fair fly ball hit with a force play at third base, which is deemed catchable by an umpire, be ruled an out irrespective of the fielder's play, eliminating the force play at all bases.


fielder's choice

fielder's choice (countable and uncountable, plural fielders' choices or fielder's choices)

fielders' choices (plural)
fielder's choices (plural)

(baseball) A play in which a fielder puts out a baserunner, instead putting out the hitter at first base.


catcher's interference

(baseball) A form of interference in which a catcher intentionally or inadvertently physically hinders a batter from the opportunity to legally swing at a pitched ball, and for which the catcher is charged an error.


hit batsman

(baseball) A batter who is hit by a pitched ball, and is awarded first base as a result.


hit-by-pitch

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(baseball) An official scoring play in which a batter is hit by a pitched ball, and is awarded first base as a result, and where the batter is referred to as a hit batsman.


game score

(baseball) A metric used to evaluate the value of a pitcher's performance in one game. In a nine-inning game, an average score is 50, and the maximum achievable score is 114.


inside-the-parker

(baseball, informal) A home run in which the ball does not leave the field of play; an inside-the-park home run.


Grapefruit League

Compound of grapefruit + league; grapefruit trees are cultivated in Florida. Compare Cactus League.

(baseball) The set of Major League Baseball teams that play spring training games in Florida.


Cactus League

Compound of cactus + league. Compare Grapefruit League.

(baseball) The set of Major League Baseball teams which play spring training games in Arizona.


spring training

Spring training for the Cactus League begins tomorrow.

The spring training schedule has been released.

(baseball) A set of practice and exhibition games for each Major League Baseball team, preceding the start of the regular season, which are used by a manager to determine the roster for the regular season.


three up, three down

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(baseball) The recording of three outs in an inning without allowing a batter to reach first base.


Texas leaguer

(baseball) A weakly hit fly ball that drops between the infielders and outfielders for a hit; a blooper, a flare.


three true outcomes

Me three. I never have quite understood all the "three true outcomes" fetish around here. I mean, I know that building an offense around walks and 3-run jacks embodies the Sabermetric Virtues, and especially in today's conditions that's the way to win, but man, it sure leads to some slow, boring games.

2002 April 18, Perry, “Re: To all you Oakland A's fans...”, in rec.sport.baseball (Usenet):

(baseball) The three results of a plate appearance that do not involve the fielders: home runs, walks, and strikeouts.


plate appearance

plate appearance (plural plate appearances)

catcher's interference
catcher's interference

(baseball) A batter's completed turn in the batter's box. It usually results in an at-bat or walk, but may also result in a hit-by-pitch, sacrifice fly, sacrifice hit, or catcher's interference. If the third out of an inning is recorded prior to completion of the batter's turn, no plate appearance is credited to the batter, and he will lead off his team's next turn at bat.


lead off

Jones has been the team's lead off hitter for three years.

(baseball) The first batter in the batting order.

The lead off hitter for the sixth inning is Jones.

(baseball) The first batter of an inning.

(baseball) The short distance that a player stands away from their current base.


lead off

en-verb

lead off (third-person singular simple present leads off, present participle leading off, simple past and past participle led off)

leads off (present singular third-person)
leading off (participle present)
led off (participle past)
led off (past)

Jones led off the inning with a home run.

Jones is leading off an inning for the third time in the game.

(baseball) To be the first batter of an inning.


no decision

Jones had three straight no decisions, but the bullpen eventually won all three games.

(baseball) A game for which the starting pitcher does not record a win or a loss.


starting pitcher

en-noun

starting pitcher (plural starting pitchers)

That team has the best starting pitchers in the league.

(baseball) A pitcher who is usually used to start a game; a member of a team's rotation. Compare relief pitcher.

The starting pitcher for today's game has not been announced yet.

(baseball) A pitcher who is recorded to begin the game.


relief pitcher

The team's relief pitchers have not allowed a run in the past six games.

(baseball) A pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher or another relief pitcher is removed due to injury, ineffectiveness, ejection from the game or fatigue.


nubber

(baseball) A batted ball that travels slowly and not very far.


bases loaded

He's had four hits this week with the bases loaded.

(baseball) Having a baserunner on first base, second base, and third base at the same time.


no room at the inn

From the Biblical story of the birth of Jesus (Luke 2).

The pitcher is struggling to throw strikes but there's no room at the inn.

(baseball, used by play-by-play announcers) A situation in which an ineffective pitcher is pitching with the bases loaded.


station-to-station

A strategy in which a team attempts to score runs by stealing bases, bunting, sacrificing, hitting singles and adopting hit-and-run plays; inside baseball or small ball.

A strategy in which a team attempts to score runs by eschewing the stolen base and small ball, instead allowing baserunners to advance only on hits or other balls in play.


cornerman

(basketball) A player who can play both the small forward and power forward positions.


double steal

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The team is known to try the double steal because it has so many speedsters.

(baseball) A situation in which two baserunners attempt to steal a base simultaneously. This is usually called by the manager when there are runners on first base and second base.

This pair have seven double steals this season.

(baseball) The successful completion of a double steal.


infield shift

From infield and shift.
Originally called the Williams shift or Boudreau shift, respectively named for Ted Williams and Lou Boudreau, and first used during the 1946 World Series by St. Louis Cardinals manager Eddie Dyer as a defensive gimmick. In the late 1990s, the strategy was revived, using the more generic infield shift, which has been used exclusively since then.

(baseball) A defensive alignment in which the third baseman, shortstop and second baseman positionally shift to their left when a left-handed batter is in the batter's box. Used primarily when the batter is an extreme pull hitter.


DIPS

(baseball) Initialism of defense-independent pitching statistics.


defense-independent pitching statistics

defense-independent pitching statistics pl (plural only)

(baseball) A measure of a pitcher's effectiveness based only on plays that do not involve fielders. Originally included only hit-by-pitch, walks, strikeouts, and home runs allowed, but more recently incorporates fly ball percentage, ground ball percentage, and line drive percentage.


extra inning

extra innings (plural)
extra inning (alternative)

We'll have to play another extra inning in this game.

(baseball, usually in the plural) An additional inning of play required to break a tie.


throw smoke

en-verb

throw smoke (third-person singular simple present throws smoke, present participle throwing smoke, simple past threw smoke, past participle thrown smoke)

throws smoke (present singular third-person)
throwing smoke (participle present)
threw smoke (past)
thrown smoke (participle past)

He has been throwing smoke all game.

(baseball, slang, intransitive) To consistently pitch fastballs that are difficult to hit.


OPS

on-base plus slugging
on-base plus slugging#English

(baseball) Initialism of on-base plus slugging.


on-base plus slugging

(baseball) A metric used to evaluate the effectiveness of a hitter; the sum of on-base percentage and slugging percentage.


on-base percentage

en-noun

on-base percentage (plural on-base percentages)

(baseball) The frequency with which a hitter successfully reaches first base.


hitter's count

The runners will be going on the hitter's count.

(baseball) A count favourable to the batter, in which there are more balls than strikes, especially a 3-0, 3-1, or 2-0 count.


sidearmer

Like other sidearmers, O’Day found salvation out of desperation.

2009 March 19, Ben rShpigel, “Medicine’s Loss Could Be the Mets’ Gain”, in New York Times:

(baseball) One who throws with arm roughly parallel to the ground.


outslug

en-verb

outslug (third-person singular simple present outslugs, present participle outslugging, simple past and past participle outslugged)

outslugs (present singular third-person)
outslugging (participle present)
outslugged (participle past)
outslugged (past)

(transitive, baseball) To score more runs than.


left-handed specialist

en-noun

left-handed specialist (plural left-handed specialists)

(baseball) A left-handed relief pitcher who specializes in getting left-handed or poor right-handed switch batters out .


foot trap

(soccer) The use of the bottom of the foot to control a rolling or low bouncing ball.


yakker

Said to be from the flight path of the yawker bird.https://www.si.com/mlb/2017/05/23/curveball-clayton-kershaw-lance-mccullers

(baseball, slang) A curveball or slider.


beat out

en-verb

beat out (third-person singular simple present beats out, present participle beating out, simple past beat out, past participle beaten out or beat out)

beats out (present singular third-person)
beating out (participle present)
beat out (past)
beaten out (participle past)
beat out (participle past)

I then made another ſign that I wanted Drink. They found by my eating, that a ſmall Quantity would not ſuffice me, and being a moſt ingenious People, they flung up with great dexterity one of their largeſt Hogſheads, then rolled it towards my Hand, and beat out the top; I drank it off at a Draught, which I might well do, for it did not hold half a pint, and taſted like a ſmall Wine of Burgundy, but much more delicious.

1726 October 28, [Jonathan Swift], “The Author Gives Some Account of Himself and Family, His First Inducements to Travel. […]”, in Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. […] [Gulliver’s Travels], volume I, London: […] Benj[amin] Motte, […], →OCLC, part I (A Voyage to Lilliput), page 13:

(baseball, of a runner) To reach base after a bunt or groundball.


corner infield

(baseball) The portion of the infield consisting of first base and third base.


corner infielder

en-noun

corner infielder (plural corner infielders)

(baseball) A player whose fielding position is in the corner infield (first base or third base).


middle infield

(baseball) The fielders near second base: the second baseman and shortstop.

(baseball) The portion of the infield consisting of second base and home plate, including the catcher, second baseman, and shortstop.


middle infielder

middle infielder (plural middle infielders)

(baseball) A player whose fielding position is in the middle infield (the second baseman and shortstop).


pitcher's count

pitcher's count (plural pitcher's counts)

The infield defence has moved to double play depth on the pitcher's count.

(baseball) A count favourable to the pitcher, usually with two strikes; a 1-2, 0-2, or 0-1 count.


death rattle

death rattles (plural)
death-rattle (alternative)

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(cricket, by extension) The sound of a batsman’s stumps being broken, so called because this leads to the batsman’s dismissal.


Blue Jay

He is the only Blue Jay at the All-Star game this year.

(baseball) A player for the Toronto Blue Jays.


Blue Jays

The Blue Jays lead the game going into the ninth inning.

(baseball) The team Philadelphia Blue Jays, a short-lived and disused name for the Philadelphia Phillies in the 1940s.


Orioles

The Orioles have rallied to tie the game.


place kick

(soccer, rugby) A kick in which the ball is placed, at rest, on the ground or on a small tee


long ball

Welsh nerves continued to jangle as Blake let a long ball bounce over his head and only Wayne Hennessey's swift advance from his line prevented Mirko Vucinic sneaking in.

2011 September 2, “Wales 2-1 Montenegro”, in BBC:

(soccer) A kick in which the ball is kicked over the heads of other players into an empty space, into which an attacker is moving.

In the first group game, they played long ball against Sweden, who knew the English game, and so were hardly likely to be caught off-guard by direct play.

2013 October 24, Alex Ferguson, ALEX FERGUSON: My Autobiography: The Sensational Million Copy Number One Bestseller, Hachette UK, →ISBN:

Sometimes, a team will use a long-ball strategy to move the ball. In this strategy, a defender will kick the ball in a long pass, far up the field, to the striker or other forward.

2018 July 15, Cathleen Small, Soccer, Gareth Stevens Publishing LLLP, →ISBN:

Graham Taylor, usually cast as a regressive long-ball manager, understood the error.

2022 October 27, Paul Hayward, England Football: The Biography: 1872 - 2022, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN:

(soccer, usually attributive) A strategy focused on sending the ball upfield directly to the striker, especially one with few other tactical innovations.

In the 1970s Seaver knew that batters could connect for a long ball at almost any time, so he had to be able to reach back and strike a hitter out if necessary.

2007, Gary Gillette, Pete Palmer, The 2007 Espn Baseball Encyclopedia, 4th edition, Sterling Publishing Company, →ISBN, page 1038:

He could run a team, tough as nails, shoot the long ball; he had great instincts and feel for the game.

2011, Chris Herren, Bill Reynolds, Basketball Junkie: A Memoir, Macmillan, →ISBN:


slurve

Of the 90 pitches he threw, Igawa, who relies on a slurve, fastball and changeup, never unleashed one that traveled faster than 91 miles per hour.

2008 June 20, Rainer Sabin, “Igawa Searching for a Way Back to New York”, in New York Times:

(baseball) A pitch in which the pitcher throws a slider as if he or she were throwing a curve ball.


roundarm

(cricket) An obsolete style of bowling where the bowler's arm is at right angles to the body at the point of delivery.


crackback

Mike Pereira, the league’s director of officiating, said Wade did not commit an illegal crackback block because he was blocking upfield and not back toward the ball.

2007 January 3, The Associated Press, “Saban Needs More Time to Mull Alabama Offer”, in New York Times:

(American football) A block in which the blocker, positioned wide, blocks back towards where the ball was snapped.


goalscoring

a perfect goalscoring opportunity

(soccer, sometimes attributive) The scoring of goals.


layback

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From lay + back (presumably from confusion between lay and lie).

Only a fine interception from Mickael Silvestre denied the marauding Czech international an early chance from Tomasz Radzinski's layback and, as United struggled to find any momentum, their hosts threatened to overwhelm them.

2000 October 25, Daniel Taylor, “Radzinski double floors United”, in the Guardian:

(soccer) A short backwards pass to a teammate in an attacking position.


sinkerballing

The Mets, a day after scoring 9 runs on 12 hits, managed four singles against Aaron Cook, the Rockies’ sinkerballing right-hander, who pitched a complete game.

2008 May 26, Ben Shpigel, “Mets Lose Again; Wilpon Is Up Next”, in New York Times:

(baseball) The pitching of sinkerballs (sinkers)


centreback

" Ferguson paid tribute to the way Wigan - managed by former United centreback Steve Bruce - battled after their early setback.

2009 January 15, “Wayne Rooney injures hamstring as Manchester United beat Wigan Athletic”, in Herald Sun:

(soccer) Alternative spelling of centre-back


stroke play

Greg Chappell: the master bastman. Enthralled crowds all over the world with his glorious strokeplay.

1990, Ashes: Battles and Bellylaughs, Byron Bay: Swan Publishing, page 207:

(cricket) Batting, especially excellent batting.


front line

front lines (plural)
front-line (alternative)
frontline (alternative)

The home team eventually started to unpick the Town defence and Fabregas forced a saved from visiting goalkeeper Marton Fulop after collecting a pass from Bendtner, who played on the right side of the front line.

2011 January 25, Paul Fletcher, “Arsenal 3 - 0 Ipswich (agg 3 - 1)”, in BBC:

(soccer) attack, collectively the attackers or forwards.


Tigers

(cricket) The Bangladesh national cricket team.


long stop

long stops (plural)
long-stop (alternative)

(cricket) A fielding position, now confined to the amateur game, behind the wicket-keeper (so as to retrieve balls that the wicket-keeper misses); a fielder in this position


cleanup hitter

(baseball) the fourth batter in the batting order, usually a power hitter


power hitter

(baseball) a batter with a high slugging percentage


VORP

value over replacement player
value over replacement player#English

(baseball) Acronym of value over replacement player.


value over replacement player

(baseball) A statistical measure which evaluates the relative performance of a batter or pitcher compared to a hypothetical replacement player of average fielding skill and below average hitting or pitching.


bricole

From French bricole, from Late Latin briccola, bricola, of uncertain origin.

(billiards) A shot in which the cue ball is initially driven against the cushion.


Fox

* (surname): From fox (“vulpine animal”)

The Foxes played with plenty of initiative in the original tie at the Walkers Stadium and they started this tie in impressively positive fashion, producing the game's first two chances: Andy King's goal-bound half-volley from Steve Howard's header down was tipped over by Joe Hart and Sol Bamba headed the resultant corner wide.

2011 January 18, Phil Dawkes, “Man City 4 - 2 Leicester”, in BBC:

(soccer) Someone connected with Leicester City Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


no side

(rugby) Called by the referee at the end of a match, as no side has the next possession of the ball.


small forward

(basketball) A forward who is the shorter of the two forward positions, and often plays behind the power forwards.

pieni laitahyökkääjä

basketball: shorter of the two forward positions


power forward

(basketball) A forward who is the taller of the two forward positions, and is often responsible for scoring near the basket, collecting rebounds and blocking shots in defense.


opening batsman

opening batsman (plural opening batsmen)

(cricket) The first batsman of an innings.

(cricket) One of the first two batsmen of an innings.


leadoff hitter

(baseball) The first hitter in the batting order, who faces the first pitch of the game.

(baseball) The first hitter of any given inning.


dunkfest

Another Ridgewood Y regular described seeing Dalton get into a trash-talking dunkfest on a tough playground in Miami.

2004, Timothy Harper, Doing Good: Inspirational Stories Of Everyday Americans At Home And At Work:

A WORTHY DUNKFEST: Worthy's 28 points in the game included five dunks.

2006, Jimmy Black, Scott Fowler, Jimmy Black's Tales from the Tar Heels:

Bryant joined Julius Erving, Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins and Vince Carter as judges of the dunk contest Saturday night, an event that paled in comparison with Sunday night’s dunkfest, led by Bryant, Amare Stoudemire and Vince Carter.

2007 February 19, Liz Robbins, “On Star-Studded Stage, Bryant Proves the Best”, in New York Times:

The conclusion itself turned into the kind of dunkfest for bench players usually reserved for rec league blowouts.

2007, Roland Lazenby, Mindgames: Phil Jackson's Long Strange Journey:

(slang, rare, basketball) A game involving many dunks.


Statue of Liberty

(American football) A Statue of Liberty play, which involves a fake in which the quarterback assumes a pose like that of the statue.


look-in

(American football) A quick short pass to a receiver running diagonally toward the center of the field.


back four

It was a comfortable evening for the Gunners’ back four.

Despite dominating possession and territory, they were being comfortably contained by Everton's well-organised midfield and diligent back four.

2011 December 10, David Ornstein, “Arsenal 1 - 0 Everton”, in BBC Sport:

With Wales in a back four, England found joy out wide. The defensive effort impressed though, and Neco Williams courageously took a driven strike from Rashford to the head as Wales stood firm, but then, concern hit.

2022 November 29, Ian Mitchelmore, “Wales put out of World Cup misery by England as sobering tournament must signal changing of the guard”, in WalesOnline:

(soccer) The set of four defenders in a team.


strike partner

The striker crossed the ball into the area and found his strike partner Jones, who headed it into the net.

Barton played an important role in both strikes, finding the front two with raking past from just beyond the Newcastle area before feeding in Lovenkrands with a quick free-kick who in turn found his strike partner.

2011 January 5, Saj Chowdhury, “Newcastle 0 - 0 West Ham”, in BBC:


on a pair

(cricket) Describing the status of a batsman who has made a duck in the first innings, and is yet to score in the second.


league cup

single-elimination tournament
single-elimination tournament

(soccer) A single-elimination tournament for which entry is restricted only to teams in the top national league or leagues.


run for the roses

run for the roses (plural runs for the roses)

Looking back at Ohio State's run for the roses, there might be some who will insist the Buckeyes were lucky to escape defeat at least once. . . . the Buckeyes whipped a jinx in the form of premature Rose Bowl talk.

1954, Lloyd Larson, "Ohio Comes Through Like Real Champ," Milwaukee Sentinel, 23 Nov., part 2, p. 2 (retrieved 24 Aug. 2009)

(idiomatic, American football) A college football game or series of games played with the ultimate goal of qualifying for the championship Rose Bowl game.


score string

(billiards) A wire strung with beads and hung horizontally above or near the table which is used to keep score.

àbac

device used to keep the score in billiards


slotback

(American football) A particular position in American football, often a running back who lines up near the line of scrimmage and can function as a wide receiver.

If Hufnagel's looking for a hint, he might want to get his defence to focus on slotback P.K. Sam. Even though the Argos say they want to run the ball more, passing will remain the key part of the equation.

2009 August 28, Chris Zelkovich, “Sam hopes to boost Argos' sagging attack”, in Toronto Star:

(Canadian football) A particular position in Canadian football, similar to a hybrid between wide receiver and running back.


ballhandling

Pointer's ballhandling, passing, and shooting were astounding for such a young player.

1997 May 23, Patrick Z. McGavin, “Driving Force”, in Chicago Reader:

(basketball) Skillful handling of the basketball when dribbling, passing or receiving


pick six

pick sixes (plural)
pick-six (alternative)

(American football, slang) An interception by the defense that is run back the other way for a touchdown.


ballhawk

(American football, basketball) A player who is particularly good at catching interceptions.

They documented Waveland Avenue's ballhawk culture, where Moe Mullins, who's recovered more than 3,500, is king, and followed him home to gape at his bounty: 1,000 major-league balls hoarded like dinosaur eggs.

2001 October 5, Deanna Isaacs, “Oddballs and True Believers/Film Center's New Marquee Player”, in Chicago Reader:

Last season, when the Giants came to town, a noted ballhawk named Wes Wagner scored tickets in the first row of the bleacher boxes in right field.

2007 July 18, Lee Jenkins, “At Wrigley, Fans Debate What to Do With a Ball”, in New York Times:

(baseball) A fielder who is particularly good at catching fly balls.


beanbrawl

(baseball, informal) A fight between teams at a baseball game, typically caused by a beanball.


galactico

Borrowed from Spanish galáctico. Doublet of galactic.

The danger about each of Mr Brown's weekend initiatives - his appearance as a galactico in Team Europe and his robust hostility to excessive lending - is that each may be more tactical than strategic, more appearance than reality.

2009 February 23, “Editorial: Brown in Berlin, image and reality”, in The Guardian:

Perez has promised a return of the "galactico" era at Madrid after initiating the original one from 2000-06 with the blockbuster signings of Zinedine Zidane, Beckham, Luis Figo and Brazil's Ronaldo.

2009 July 7, “Ronaldo rocks 80,000 fans at Bernabeu”, in Toronto Star:


PSG

Paris Saint-Germain Football Club
w:en:Paris Saint-Germain F.C.

(soccer) Initialism of Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, a French football club from Paris; from French PSG


fireballer

From the beginning, Clemens was a fireballer, Wells more of a junkballer.

2007 June 14, Lee Jenkins, “At 44, Wells Is the Anti-Clemens”, in New York Times:

(baseball) A pitcher who throws very fast balls.


loosener

(cricket) A usually inaccurate delivery bowled early in a bowler's first over.


starting five

(US, basketball) The five players who are initially playing for a team at the start of a game.


squibber

Kimi Pohlman raced home on a squibber back to the circle that Florida pitcher Stacey Nelson could not handle, giving Washington the decisive run in a 3-2 victory for its first N.C.A.A. softball championship Tuesday night.

2009 June 3, The Associated Press, “Washington Takes N.C.A.A. Softball Crown”, in New York Times:

(baseball) A fly ball that becomes a base hit


Chinese snooker

Chinese snooker (plural Chinese snookers)

His white came back down the table in the orthodox fashion and rested up against the green ball in a Chinese snooker.

1991, Michael Curtin, The plastic tomato cutter:

...in snooker a 'Chinese snooker' is the action of leaving the cue-ball, not behind a coloured ball as with a normal snooker, but in front of one and almost touching it...

1998, Pamela Siew Im Ong, One man's will: a portrait of Dato' Sir Onn bin Ja'afar:

Now, happy bridging over a chinese snooker.

2003, Tjander Nathoeni, “touching ball clarification (snooker)”, in rec.sport.billiard (Usenet):

(snooker) A reverse snooker position where the cue ball is in front of, rather than behind, a ball that is not on, making the shot very difficult because the bridge is hampered and the cueing angle is unnaturally high.


clear-out

clear-outs (plural)
clearout (alternative)

(basketball) A semicircular sweep with the ball grasped firmly in both hands.

Dave Kearney was straight over the ball in a jackal, and Mul made a brilliant clear-out.

2016, Gerry Thornley, Front Up, Rise Up: The Official Story of Connacht Rugby:

Leading British rugby correspondent Brendan Gallagher, writing in The Rugby Paper on 31 December 2017, produced a withering indictment of the practice, saying: “Sort out the thuggery at clear-out time, start reffing it properly. The clear out doesn't exist in law and certainly shouldn't be used as an excuse for players who are not bound to launch themselves off their feet like an Exocet and take out-injure-maim players who are behind the ball and legally bound on. Or sometimes just trying to reach the ruck."

(rugby) The act of removing opponents from a ruck or scrum in order to secure possession of the ball.


goal area

(soccer) The area of the pitch, extending six yards from the goal, from which a goal kick is taken.

àrea de meta

soccer: area from which a goal kick is taken


buzzer flag

(soccer) A linesman's flag that is equipped with a button that causes a receiver (typically worn by the referee) to buzz, thus warning him of the flag's use.


pick out

en-verb

pick out (third-person singular simple present picks out, present participle picking out, simple past and past participle picked out)

picks out (present singular third-person)
picking out (participle present)
picked out (participle past)
picked out (past)

From pick + out. Compare Saterland Frisian uutpikke (“to pick out”), Dutch uitpikken (“to pick out”).

cog

Ameobi skipped away down the left in the 39th minute and tried to pick out Shearer with a cross but his delivery was cut out by goalkeeper Jussi J...

2006 December 26, “Bolton Wanderers vs Newcastle United”, in 4TheGame, archived from the original on 2008-04-14:

(transitive, idiomatic, soccer) To send a long pass or cross to.


put through

en-verb

put through (third-person singular simple present puts through, present participle putting through, simple past and past participle put through)

puts through (present singular third-person)
putting through (participle present)
put through (participle past)
put through (past)

Friedel again had to save as he parried a Patrice Evra shot before gathering the ball after the left-back had been put through by Ryan Giggs.

2011 February 1, Mandeep Sanghera, “Man Utd 3 - 1 Aston Villa”, in BBC:

(transitive, soccer) To pass the ball to (someone) giving them a one-on-one scoring opportunity.


rack up

rack up (third-person singular simple present racks up, present participle racking up, simple past and past participle racked up)

racks up (present singular third-person)
racking up (participle present)
racked up (participle past)
racked up (past)

At the start of the game, the referee racks up the red balls.

If you rack up, I'll break.

(transitive, intransitive, snooker, billiards, cue sports) To arrange in a rack.


rib-tickler

rib-ticklers (plural)
rib tickler (alternative)
ribtickler (alternative)

(cricket, slang) A ball bowled short of a length that bounces up higher than expected and strikes the batter in the ribs.


five-tool player

en-noun

five-tool player (plural five-tool players)

five-tool players (plural)
five tool player (alternative)

Five-tool player who hits for avg., power, runs, throws, fields.

1993 March, “1993 American League Rookie Scouting Reports”, in Baseball Digest, page 57:

Griffey is the complete player, one who is known as a five-tool player.

2000, Jeff Savage, Sports Great: Ken Griffey, Jr., Enslow Publishers, →ISBN, page 11:

The original five-tool player, Ewing is widely considered the greatest ballplayer of the nineteenth century.

2010, Dan Fost, Giants Past & Present, MBI Publishing Company, →ISBN, page 70:

(baseball) A player who can hit for a high batting average, hit for power, run the bases well, throw well and field well.


Test side

(cricket) Any national cricket team that is authorized to compete in Test cricket.


Test cricket

From the idea that the long, gruelling matches are a trial of the relative strengths of the two sides.

(cricket) The highest level of international cricket, where Test sides compete against each other in five-day matches.


between the pipes

A shutout performance calls for a brilliant display between the pipes and Bill was right on the job.

1927 March 12, “Burghs Back In Race for Eastern Hockey Title”, in Ottawa Citizen, Canada, retrieved 2009-12-26:

[T]he Finns might just have the best goaltending in the 12-team tournament.

2009, Shawn P. Roarke, "Finland's biggest strength is between the pipes," www.nhl.com (National Hockey League), 19 Feb. (retrieved 26 Dec. 2009)

(ice hockey, lacrosse, idiomatic) Between the goalposts; with respect to or playing the position of goaltender.


step over

step overs (plural)
stepover (alternative)

(soccer) A dribbling move, or feint, in football (soccer), used to fool a defensive player into thinking the offensive player, in possession of the ball, in which the foot is moved over the ball without making contact with it.


short-stop

en-verb

short-stop (third-person singular simple present short-stops, present participle short-stopping, simple past and past participle short-stopped)

short-stops (present singular third-person)
short-stopping (participle present)
short-stopped (participle past)
short-stopped (past)

In The Spirit of the Times, the most reliable sporting paper of the Coast, we find the following encouraging criticism on our baseball nine: " Koshland (a tower of strength to this league) short topped and ran bases as brilliantly as the best of professionals."

1886, California Occident - Volumes 11-12, page 88:

Baird, '12, has been catching, short-stopping, second-basing and left-fielding with varying good nature, but impartial ability and with commendable attention to such trifling details as hitting and base running, matters apparently beneath the notice of most of the team.

1909, The Phi Gamma Delta - Volume 32, page 742:

I have never known her to follow with any degree of avidity the fortunes of the Kansas City Monarchs, for whom Robinson short-stopped last season.

1979, Mark Harris, Short Work of it: Selected Writing, page 4:

(baseball) To play the position of shortstop.


without troubling the scorers

Watson was caught and bowled for a fairly played eighteen, and Jardine again retired to the pavilion without troubling the scorers.

The PE teacher, the putative authority on all things sporting, went out, as they say, without troubling the scorers.

1993, Tom Raabe, Sports for the Athletically Impaired:

Mark Waugh came and went without troubling the scorers, leaving Australia at a perilous 2/16 with one man on the way to hospital.

He was brought down to earth in Georgetown, however, ten days later, suffering the indignity of being run out without troubling the scorers in the victory over British Guiana.

2003, James P. Coldham, Lord Hawke: a cricketing legend:

(informal, cricket) Describing the manner of the dismissal of a batsman who is out without scoring any runs


D/L

Duckworth-Lewis method
Duckworth-Lewis method#English

(cricket) Initialism of Duckworth-Lewis method.


interception try

en-noun

interception try (plural interception tries)

Australia’s 18 turnovers were a costly case of self-harm. So, too, were the two interception tries that ultimately wrecked any chance of Michael Cheika’s side ending their recent grim sequence against the Poms.

2019 October 19, Robert Kitson, “England into World Cup semi-finals after bruising victory over Australia”, in The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media:

(rugby) A try that results from an interception.


dummy scissors

(rugby) An attacking move by two players resembling a scissors move but where the ball carrier only dummies the pass to his team-mate.


half-break

half-breaks (plural)
half break (alternative)

(rugby) The situation where a player almost breaks the opposition defensive line but is stopped by the opposition.


basewoman

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(baseball, softball) A female fielder positioned near a base


baseperson

The baseperson may not interfere with the runner and must stay inside the cones.

1992, California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, CAHPERD Journal Times, volume 55, page 3, rules of Crazy Baseball

The ready position for the second baseperson is generally located slightly more than halfway to second from first and 10 to 15 feet behind the base path (see Figure 4-34 ).

1993, Michael A. Clark, Youth Baseball: A Complete Handbook:

(baseball, softball) A fielder (of any gender) positioned near a base.


base runner

(baseball) Alternative spelling of baserunner


bat out

en-verb

bat out (third-person singular simple present bats out, present participle batting out, simple past and past participle batted out)

bats out (present singular third-person)
batting out (participle present)
batted out (participle past)
batted out (past)

(cricket) to continue batting (normally to prevent what would otherwise result in losing a match)


box kick

(rugby) A type of kick performed by the scrum-half. From the base of a ruck, maul or scrum, the scrum-half will stand sideways onto the opposition with his kicking foot further from them, and kick the ball high into the air so as to hopefully prevent the opposition charging down the kick.


ASM

(soccer) Initialism of Association Sportive de Monaco Football Club.


double-double-double

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Lamar Odom had a double-double-double tonight with 22 points and 22 rebounds.

(basketball) The achievement of twenty or more of any two of points scored, assists, rebounds, blocks, or steals in a single game; most often achieved with points and rebounds.


cup-tied

(sports, chiefly soccer, of a player) ineligible to compete in a cup competition due to having previously played for a different team in the same competition in the same season.


Potter

From Middle English Potter, English, Dutch, and north German surname, from the noun pot.
The usage for someone from Stoke-on-Trent refers to it being the home of the pottery industry in England, where it is also known as The Potteries.

(soccer) someone connected with Stoke City Football Club (in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, UK), as a fan, player, coach etc.


cheatable

en-adj

cheatable (comparative more cheatable, superlative most cheatable)

more cheatable (comparative)
most cheatable (superlative)

(billiards, snooker, of a pocket) Able to be potted at either edge rather than in the middle


Yid

Yidden (plural)
Yidn (plural)
Yids (plural)
yid (alternative)

From Yiddish ייִד (yid, “Jew”). Doublet of Jew.

(soccer, informal) A supporter or club member of Tottenham Hotspur F.C.


five-a-side

(soccer) a variation of soccer played on a smaller pitch, and with only five players in a team.


flat back four

(soccer) collectively, a set of defenders who stay on the same level on the pitch.


TCCB

(UK, cricket, historical) Initialism of Test and County Cricket Board.


Tottenham

From Old English personal name Totta, in the genitive case Tottan + hām (“homestead”).

(soccer) Tottenham Hotspur F.C., a football club in north London.


Man United

(soccer) Manchester United Football Club


Old Trafford

(soccer) The home stadium of Manchester United Football Club.

(soccer, by extension) Manchester United Football Club itself.

(cricket) A cricket ground adjacent to the Manchester United stadium.


Stamford Bridge

(soccer) the home stadium of Chelsea Football Club

(soccer, by extension) Chelsea Football Club itself


Highbury

(historical, soccer) the former home stadium of Arsenal Football Club

(soccer, historical, by extension) Arsenal Football Club itself


scrum machine

(rugby) A padded, weighty device against which a pack of rugby football forwards can practice scrummaging and rucking. It is used by players of both rugby league and rugby union.


ask the question

en-verb

ask the question (third-person singular simple present asks the question, present participle asking the question, simple past and past participle asked the question)

asks the question (present singular third-person)
asking the question (participle present)
asked the question (participle past)
asked the question (past)

(cricket, informal) To make an appeal to the umpire against the batsman.


shot to nothing

en-noun

shot to nothing (plural shots to nothing)

(snooker) An attempted pot that is intended not to leave a possible pot for the opponent if missed.


Villa Park

(soccer) the home stadium of Aston Villa Football Club.

(soccer, by extension) Aston Villa Football Club itself.


White Hart Lane

(soccer) The former home stadium of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.

(soccer, by extension) Tottenham Hotspur Football Club itself.


Molineux

Another surprise is that Newcastle have the meanest defence in all four leagues and they did their utmost to preserve the tag at Molineux.

2011 October 1, Saj Chowdhury, “Wolverhampton 1 - 2 Newcastle”, in BBC Sport:

(soccer) The home stadium of Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club.

(soccer, by extension) Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club itself.


total clearance

total clearance (countable and uncountable, plural total clearances)

(snooker) The potting of all the object balls on the table.


Evertonian

/ɛvəˈtəʊnɪ.ən/

(soccer) someone connected with Everton Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Gooner

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-Gooner.wav

A corruption of gunner, derived from the Arsenal coat of arms of a cannon.

(soccer, slang) someone connected with Arsenal Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Red Devil

(soccer) someone connected with Manchester United Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Wednesdayite

The boys couldn't stand idly by while three Wednesdayites got mullered; it was not the done thing.

2012, Anthony Cronshaw, Wednesday Rucks and Rock 'n' Roll: Tales from the East Bank:

(soccer) Someone connected with Sheffield Wednesday Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Villan

(soccer) someone connected with Aston Villa Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Ewood

(soccer) Ewood Park, the home stadium of Blackburn Rovers FC


Trotter

As an English and Scottish surname for a messenger, from trot. As a German surname, from Trotte (“winepress”).

(soccer) someone connected with Bolton Wanderers Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.

(basketball, slang) A player for the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team.


Claret

(soccer) someone connected with Burnley Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Cottager

From the name of the stadium, Craven Cottage.

(UK, soccer) Someone connected with Fulham Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Black Cat

Understandably the teams were hyped for their 132nd league meeting, but Steve Bruce's Black Cats were also looking to settle a score having been humiliated 5-1 at St James' Park at the end of October.

2011 January 16, Saj Chowdhury, “Sunderland 1 - 1 Newcastle”, in BBC:

(soccer) someone connected with Sunderland Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Latic

It is 10 months since they lost to the Latics in last season's final, something that the visiting supporters were intent on reminding everyone.

2014 March 9, Jacob Steinberg, “Wigan shock Manchester City in FA Cup again to reach semi-finals”, in The Guardian:

(slang, soccer) Someone connected with Wigan Athletic Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.

(slang, soccer) Someone connected with Oldham Athletic Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Magpie

(soccer) Someone connected with Newcastle United Football Club, as a fan, player, coach, etc.

(soccer) Someone connected with Notts County Football Club, as a fan, player, coach, etc.


Toon Army

From toon, the local dialect's word for town.

(soccer) The supporters of Newcastle United Football Club, a football club in Newcastle upon Tyne.


Baggie

(soccer) someone connected with West Bromwich Albion Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Baggies

The Baggies had offered little threat until the 28th minute, but when their first chance came it was a clear one.

2012 April 22, Sam Sheringham, “Liverpool 0-1 West Brom”, in BBC Sport:

(soccer) West Bromwich Albion Football Club


Bluebird

From bluebird, from the blue colour of the team's kit.

(soccer) Someone connected with Cardiff City Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Bluebirds

(soccer) Cardiff City Football Club, a football club in Cardiff.


Seasider

(soccer) someone connected with Blackpool Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Blade

(soccer) Someone connected with Sheffield United Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Hoop

(soccer) someone connected with Queens Park Rangers Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Tractor Boy

(soccer) Someone connected with Ipswich Town Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Hornet

(soccer) someone connected with Watford Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Sky Blue

(soccer) Someone connected with Coventry City Football Club, as a fan, player, coach, etc.

(soccer) Someone connected with Sydney FC, as a fan, player, coach, etc.


Palace

Crystal Palace Football Club
w:Crystal Palace Football Club

(UK, soccer) Ellipsis of Crystal Palace Football Club (“a football team from London”).


Canary

From 1907, coined by the football club's then-chairman who was a keen breeder of canaries.

(soccer) Someone connected with Norwich City Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Pirate

(sports) someone connected with any of a number of sports teams known as the Pirates, as a fan, player, coach etc.

(soccer) someone connected with Bristol Rovers Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Addick

Various theories: perhaps from athletic or haddock.

(soccer) someone connected with Charlton Athletic Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Scummer

(soccer, derogatory) someone connected with Southampton Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Hatter

(soccer) someone connected with Luton Town Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Saddler

(soccer) someone connected with Walsall Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Seagull

(soccer) Someone connected with Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Glover

My guide tells me of Yeovil's 'considerable glove trade', which is why the giant-killing footie club, Yeovil Town FC, is known as 'The Glovers'.

2023 June 28, Stephen Roberts, “Bradshaw's Britain: Alton to Exeter”, in RAIL, number 986, page 60:

(soccer) someone connected with Yeovil Town Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Shrimper

(soccer) someone connected with Southend United Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Chairboy

(soccer) someone connected with Wycombe Wanderers Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


scummer

(UK, soccer, slang, derogatory, offensive) A supporter of Southampton F.C..


break-building

breakbuilding (alternative)
break building (alternative)

(snooker) The act or skill of scoring points by making an uninterrupted series of pots.


CCM

Central Coast Mariners
w:Central Coast Mariners FC

(soccer) Initialism of Central Coast Mariners.


on base

One run, two hits, one walk, no errors; two left on base.

(baseball) Having reached a base in an inning.


LOSC

Lille Olympique Sporting Club
w:Lille OSC

(soccer) Initialism of Lille Olympique Sporting Club.


AJA

Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise
w:AJA

(soccer) Initialism of Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise.


beach soccer

(soccer) a variant of soccer played on a smaller-sized sand pitch.


slash line

His slash line since being traded is .262/.344/.427.

(baseball) The batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging average of a batter or team when expressed together, separated by slashes.

The opponent slash line against Jones this season is a weak .195/.232/.367.

(baseball) The batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging average of batters that have had plate appearances against a pitcher or team.


subway series

(baseball, US) a cross-town playoff battle between the New York Mets and New York Yankees

(baseball, US, dated) a crosstown baseball series playoff between two New York City baseball clubs; the Brooklyn Dodgers, New York Giants, and New York Yankees.


Battle of Alberta

(Canadian football) the competition between the Edmonton Elks (formerly Eskimos) and Calgary Stampeders teams of the CFL


Bronx Bombers

(US, baseball) nickname of the New York Yankees


White Sox

From white + sox, the footwear worn by the members of the team.

(US, baseball) The Chicago White Sox, an American baseball club.


Triple Crown

(baseball) The feat of leading one's league in three key statistical categories—batting average, home runs, and RBI for hitters; wins, strikeouts, and ERA for pitchers

(rugby) Victory by one of the Home Nations — England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales — over the other three in the annual Six Nations Championship.


FFF

French Football Federation
w:French Football Federation

(soccer) Initialism of French Football Federation.


go upstairs

en-verb

go upstairs (third-person singular simple present goes upstairs, present participle going upstairs, simple past went upstairs, past participle gone upstairs)

goes upstairs (present singular third-person)
going upstairs (participle present)
went upstairs (past)
gone upstairs (participle past)

From the practice of the third umpire having a room with an elevated position.

(cricket, of an umpire) To request a decision by the third umpire (traditionally by making a sign of a TV set with the hands)


Wallabies

(rugby) the national rugby union representative team of Australia


Matildas

(soccer) the women's national soccer representative team of Australia

Australia women's national association football team


Super Eagles

(soccer) The Nigeria national football team


Super Falcons

(soccer) The Nigeria women's national football team


BFC

Brentford Football Club
w:Brentford F.C.

(soccer) Initialism of Brentford Football Club.

Blackpool Football Club
w:Blackpool F.C.

(soccer) Initialism of Blackpool Football Club.


CCFC

Coventry City Football Club
w:Coventry City Football Club

(soccer) Initialism of Coventry City Football Club.

Cardiff City Football Club
w:Cardiff City Football Club

(soccer) Initialism of Cardiff City Football Club.


intentional grounding

en-noun

intentional grounding (plural intentional groundings)

(American football) An instance when the quarterback throws the ball into the ground or into the crowds to avoid being sacked and losing field position.


three-minute warning

three-minute warning (plural three-minute warnings)

(Canadian football) A timeout and warning given to the coaches with three minutes to go before the end of each half; after this point, the clock stops at the end of every play. Analogous to the two-minute warning of American football.


goalhanger

(informal, soccer) A player who stays near the opposing team's goal in the hope of easily scoring.


off-speed

(baseball) Being a pitch thrown at a slower speed than a fastball, such as a change-up.