Basketball Meaning
/ˈbɑːs.kɪt.bɔːl/Definition, CEFR level A1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA sport in which two opposing teams of five players strive to put a ball through a hoop.
nounThe particular kind of ball used in the sport of basketball.
Sentence Examples
Mike doesn't practice basketball on Monday.
Mike likes to play basketball.
My sister belonged to the basketball club last year.
CEFR Practice Quiz
He practiced dribbling and shooting to improve his ____ skills.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The children were playing ____ on the court at the local school today.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree Proto-Celtic *baskis Proto-Brythonicder. Late Latin bascauda Anglo-Norman bascatbor. Middle English basket English basket Proto-Indo-European *bʰel-der. Proto-Germanic *balluz Old English *beall Middle English bal English ball English basketball From basket + ball.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Children playing basketball at their home in front of the John Amos coal-fired power plant in Poca, W.Va. President Biden’s infrastructure plan includes climate change measures that aim to close coal-fired plants."
— 2021 May 12, Emily Cochrane, “In Infrastructure Talks With Biden, Capito Faces Fraught Path to Deal”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 12 Aug 2021:
"by high school he was basketballing with the best of an all-Negro league"
— 1968, Tom Tiede, Coward:
"He took a sip from a paper coffee-cup , crumpled it up and basketballed it into a small rubbish bin about five feet from him."
— 1994, Jeff Probst, Bachelor Butterflies:
Explore More A1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
He practiced dribbling and shooting to improve his ____ skills.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The children were playing ____ on the court at the local school today.