: an Irish game resembling field hockey played between two teams of 15 players each
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An Irish game resembling both field hockey and lacrosse, hurling is played between two teams of 15 players. The game is mentioned in Irish manuscripts dating back to the 13th century. The stick used—a tapered, slightly curved device with a cupped blade at the end—is called a hurley. A point is scored by hitting the ball over the crossbar of the opposing team’s goalposts, three points by driving it under the crossbar. Hurling is considered the national pastime of Ireland.
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Few experiences match the buzz of a live Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) match, where locals cheer on their regional teams in football and hurling.
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Louise Kavanagh, Travel + Leisure, 18 Aug. 2025
Israeli forces, meanwhile, carried out a raid elsewhere in the West Bank that the military said was in response to the hurling of firebombs at Israeli vehicles.
—Joseph Krauss, Chicago Tribune, 22 Jan. 2025
In previous years, demonstrators against Islam were met with protests and the hurling of objects in a couple of cases, but there were none this time.
—Niraj Warikoo, Detroit Free Press, 20 July 2024
There's also a sports section with icons of rugby, hurling and football, placed before a television, to catch a match.
—Kathryn Gregory, The Courier-Journal, 8 Mar. 2022
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Louise Kavanagh, Travel + Leisure, 18 Aug. 2025
Israeli forces, meanwhile, carried out a raid elsewhere in the West Bank that the military said was in response to the hurling of firebombs at Israeli vehicles.
—Joseph Krauss, Chicago Tribune, 22 Jan. 2025
In previous years, demonstrators against Islam were met with protests and the hurling of objects in a couple of cases, but there were none this time.
—Niraj Warikoo, Detroit Free Press, 20 July 2024
There's also a sports section with icons of rugby, hurling and football, placed before a television, to catch a match.
—Kathryn Gregory, The Courier-Journal, 8 Mar. 2022
See All Example Sentences for hurling
Cite this Entry
“Hurling.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hurling. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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