flag football

noun

|Updated on: 20 Jul 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

Kickball and flag football tournaments on the Great Lawn.

— kirby adams, The Courier-Journal, "Kentucky Derby Festival freshens up its 2018 lineup with zombies, kickball and more," 12 Apr. 2018
Camp choices are soccer, basketball, or flag football.

— staff report, Daily Southtown, "Church news," 3 July 2018
Sports include archery, basketball, cheer dance, fencing, flag football, go-karts, soccer, swimming, tennis and a flying trapeze.

— marvin glassman, Jewish Journal, "Campers reach new heights at JCC summer camp programs," 22 June 2018
In the fall, Smith is a coach for youth flag football on Saturday afternoons.

— kenny levine, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Hartford Union’s Richard Smith a role model for young athletes," 9 May 2018
Declining participation in tackle football has prompted Naperville junior high schools to move toward a change many youth leagues have already adopted: flag football.

— suzanne baker, Naperville Sun, "Naperville area middle schools replacing tackle with flag football," 25 Apr. 2018
Developing skills through flag football before high school is sound public policy from a health and safety standpoint.

— michael smolens, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Tackle ban: Is it protecting kids vs. the football 'way of life'?," 16 Feb. 2018
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

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