body check

noun

: a blocking of an opposing player with the body (as in ice hockey or lacrosse)
bodycheck transitive verb

Examples of body check in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
After being booked in the 58th minute for a body check near the halfway line on Ismaila Sarr, Krejci then played on in the 61st after a throw-in had been awarded against him, hooking the ball down the line. Steve Madeley, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2026 That not only included a fierce 33-15 win by the Pats, but also a massive body check during the game that sent Dart flying out of bounds. Matthew Couden, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 Dec. 2025 If any anatomical anomalies are detected, an invasive body check ensues. Grace Byron, New Yorker, 29 Apr. 2025 Long after the puck is gone, Hagel loads up and delivers a high, hard body check that makes some head contact on Barkov. Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 26 Apr. 2025 McAvoy’s thunderous and clean body check on Connor McDavid in the first period also got his team going. Pierre Lebrun, The Athletic, 16 Feb. 2025 On the ice, no one in the league blocked more shots on average this season than Trouba, who isn’t even tops on his team in hits but is known for big, crushing, clean open-ice body checks that have otherwise largely disappeared from the sport at its highest level. Stephen Whyno, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Apr. 2024 That prompted Gamecocks 6-foot-7 center Kamilla Cardoso to run over and body check the 5-10 Johnson to the floor. David Whitley, The Tennessean, 12 Mar. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1869, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of body check was in 1869

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Body check.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/body%20check. Accessed 28 Feb. 2026.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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