ACL

noun

ˌā-(ˌ)sē-ˈel 

plural ACLs

: a cruciate ligament of each knee that attaches the front of the tibia with the back of the femur and functions especially to prevent hyperextension of the knee and is subject to injury especially by tearing

The athlete tore their ACL during a practice game.

called also anterior cruciate ligament

Examples of ACL in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Texas Tech, still without All-America post player JT Toppin while rehabbing from a torn ACL in his right knee last February, missed seven of its first eight shots in the game. — ABC News, 5 Nov. 2026

After outside hitter Abby Vander Wal suffered an ACL injury at the end of August, Anderson has had to fill her role since the third game of the season. — Zoe Collins Rath, Austin American Statesman, 5 Nov. 2026

The challenges go beyond just salaries, media attention and funding to things as serious as child care and the rash of ACL injuries in the women’s game and as frustrating as hand-me-down uniforms and locker rooms. — Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2026

His streak of games with at least one score on the ground, which began the very game that Achane tore his ACL, also ended at four. — Miami Herald, 2 Nov. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1981, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

ACL

noun

ˌā-(ˌ)sē-ˈel 

: anterior cruciate ligament