rugby

noun

rug·​by ˈrəg-bē 

often capitalized

: a football game in which play is continuous without time-outs or substitutions, interference and forward passing are not permitted, and kicking, dribbling, lateral passing, and tackling are featured

Examples of rugby in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Booth suggests that the format should follow football and rugby’s four-year cycle rather than the current two years between finals. —Tim Ellis, Forbes.com, 24 Apr. 2025

Natural rubber rugby balls can be durable as well, but with the technology available today, rugby ball brands have increasingly used synthetic rubber materials for their products. —Bestreviews, Mercury News, 18 Apr. 2025

Men with traditional face tattoos, girls performing a haka before a rugby game and horses grazing in a pasture are all part of a complex, isolated world. —Eli Wizevich, Smithsonian Magazine, 17 Apr. 2025

Ticket sales show the match is expected to shatter the previous attendance record for a women’s rugby match. —Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 16 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Rugby School, Rugby, England

First Known Use

1864, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

rugby

noun

rug·​by ˈrəg-bē 

often capitalized

: a football game between two teams in which play is continuous and the team that has the ball may run with it, kick it, or pass it sideways or backward but is not allowed to block or make forward passes

Etymology

named for Rugby School in England where the game was first played

Geographical Definition

Rugby

geographical name

Rug·​by ˈrəg-bē 

town on the Avon River in Warwickshire, central England population 71,000