flag football

noun

|Updated on: 22 Jun 2018

Definition of flag football

: a variation of football in which a player must remove a flag attached to the ballcarrier's clothing to stop the play

See flag football defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of flag football from the Web

Roy has been involved in Special Olympics for 12 years, competing in basketball, softball, bowling, flag football, and track and field.

— gabe hauari, The Courier-Journal, "The Brown School's Caitlin Roy named Courier Journal Girls Special Olympics Athlete of the Year," 7 June 2018
The fitness event Wednesday afternoon on the White House lawn focused on how much children benefit from team sports and featured activities including flag football, baseball, golf, volleyball, soccer and track and field.

— the washington post, NOLA.com, "Trump, fast-food lover and exercise avoider, tells nation about importance of fitness," 30 May 2018
The fitness event Wednesday afternoon on the White House lawn focused on how much children benefit from team sports and featured activities including flag football, baseball, golf, volleyball, soccer and track and field.

— william wan, chicagotribune.com, "Trump, fast-food lover and exercise avoider, tells nation about importance of fitness," 30 May 2018
The senior coaches youth in his area in flag football and basketball and is volunteer official for middle school meets.

— mark stewart, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Multi-sports stars Max Alba, Lexi Romero named Journal Sentinel high school athletes of the year," 14 May 2018
Unlike last year, when the Globe was prohibited from attending the event, organizers of Best Buddies’ annual benefit featuring Tom Brady and his VIP friends playing flag football at Harvard Stadium were welcoming Friday.

— mark shanahan, BostonGlobe.com, "Tom Brady kicks off Best Buddies weekend with some football," 2 June 2018
Nguyen, the 1998 Lombardi Award winner, and Manziel, the 2012 Heisman Trophy winner, are among the truckload of former A&M standouts who will take part in A&M’s first Legends Game, a flag football contest.

— brent zwerneman, Houston Chronicle, "Former A&M stars Dat Nguyen, Johnny Manziel to headline flag football at halftime of spring game," 29 Mar. 2018
Likewise, Michael Munoz has his kids in baseball, basketball and flag football.

— scott springer, Cincinnati.com, "Munoz family athletic legacy comes full circle with OHSAA Circle of Champions," 27 Mar. 2018
There is also a cheerleading team for ages 4 to 6 who will cheer for the Outlaws’ flag football team.

— staff report, Daily Southtown, "Sports calendar," 22 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'flag football.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of flag football

1947

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

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FLAG FOOTBALL Defined for English Language Learners

flag football

noun

Definition of flag football for English Language Learners

: a form of American football in which the player with the ball is not tackled but instead must stop when another player removes a piece of cloth that is attached to the player's waist