basketball

noun

bas·​ket·​ball ˈba-skit-ˌbȯl 

often attributive

: a usually indoor court game between two teams of usually five players each who score by tossing an inflated ball through a raised goal

also : the ball used in this game

Examples of basketball in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

After a couple years of trying to juggle basketball practice with open mics, Phills decided to throw himself fully into comedy. — Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 21 Sep. 2026

On the afternoon of commencement, in May, about a thousand people filed into the United Supermarkets Arena, the basketball coliseum where Texas Tech confers its law degrees. — Benjamin Wofford, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2026

No regular season men’s basketball games have yet been played overseas. — Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 21 Sep. 2026

Gibson will immediately oversee the team’s basketball and business operations and represent the Clippers in league voting matters. — Los Angeles Times, 21 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1877, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing basketball

• fantasy football/baseball/basketball

Rhymes for basketball

• aerosol
• alcohol
• arbitral
• butanol
• cannonball
• carbinol
• cortisol
• ethanol
• fireball
• gasohol
• gossypol
• guaiacol

Kids Definition

basketball

noun

bas·​ket·​ball -ˌbȯl 

: a court game in which each of two teams tries to toss an inflated ball through a raised goal

also : the ball used in this game