tennis

noun

ten·​nis ˈte-nəs 

often attributive

1

: an indoor or outdoor game that is played with rackets and a light elastic ball by two players or pairs of players on a level court (as of clay or grass) divided by a low net

2

: court tennis

Examples of tennis in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

As a tennis player, you're used to fighting. —Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 10 Dec. 2025

After trying out a deluge of school clubs — basketball, badminton, tennis, calligraphy — and failing at all of them, one day fate leads Minami to a driving range. —Kambole Campbell, Vulture, 9 Dec. 2025

Coco Gauff tops the list at $31 billion, followed by fellow tennis players Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Świątek. —Scott Soshnick, Sportico.com, 9 Dec. 2025

The Star also wrote that Halle enjoys playing tennis and reading. —Jacqueline Weiss, PEOPLE, 9 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English tenetz, tenys, perhaps borrowed from Anglo-French tenez, 2nd person plural imperative of tenir "to hold" — more at tenant entry 1

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing tennis

• court tennis
• deck tennis
• lawn tennis
• paddle tennis
• platform tennis
• squash tennis
• table tennis
• tennis court
• tennis elbow
• tennis shoe

Rhymes for tennis

• menace

Kids Definition

tennis

noun

ten·​nis ˈten-əs 

: a game played with rackets and a light elastic ball by two players or two pairs of players on a level court divided by a low net