snooker

noun snook·er \ ˈsnu̇-kər , chiefly British ˈsnü- \

Updated on: 1 Mar 2018

Definition of snooker

: a variation of pool played with 15 red balls and 6 variously colored balls

See snooker defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of snooker from the Web

American Football is comfortably the most boring game not involving sticks (golf and snooker are worse)?

— adam blenford, Bloomberg.com, "The NFL Targets London. Britons Find It Boring," 10 Jan. 2018
To put it in terms of another popular sport in Asia, the likeable Italian is now left needing snookers.

— jonathan hawkins, CNN, "Malaysia MotoGP: Marc Marquez eyes fourth title," 27 Oct. 2017
This is a club that shares a training ground with snooker and croquet teams, a club that invites fans to its afternoon practices, a club that has been known to have its players stand in line for food at the concession stands among the fans.

— michelle kaufman, miamiherald, "Former U.S. player raising eyebrows as English Premier League coach," 26 Aug. 2017
An auction of his pool tables, snooker table, pool table light, beer signs and sports memorabilia is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Saturday.

— joe marusak, charlotteobserver, "Saying so long to ‘Harry’s’: Growth sinks last cue ball at pool hall in Plaza Midwood," 27 July 2017
Abdali, 56, learned to play snooker in the 1970s — Korean construction workers who worked with his father had a table and taught him.

— loveday morris, Washington Post, "Smoke-filled pool halls are back in Mosul. After ISIS, ‘we seek joy.’," 6 May 2017
Abdali had just returned from refereeing an international snooker tournament in the United Arab Emirates when the militants took control.

— loveday morris, Washington Post, "Smoke-filled pool halls are back in Mosul. After ISIS, ‘we seek joy.’," 6 May 2017
The State Theater’s main space, for example, is now a snooker hall.

— mike ives, New York Times, "Using Stealth, and Drones, to Document a Fading Hong Kong," 7 Feb. 2017
Squash rackets, snooker cues, and the famous Dunlop Maxply tennis racket were all made of ash.

— National Geographic, "Trees That Advanced Civilization Are Now Threatened," 11 Sep. 2016

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

Origin and Etymology of snooker

origin unknown

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1889

See Words from the same year

Other Game Terms

bezique, carom, convention, crap, euchre, gambit, monte, parlay, tierce

snooker

verb

Definition of snooker

transitive verb

: to make a dupe of : hoodwink

See snooker defined for English-language learners

Examples of snooker in a Sentence

I can't believe you managed to snooker me with that story about being an orphan.

Recent Examples of snooker from the Web

This past week, Fingerlings were out of stock on Walmart’s website, while parents complained that they had been snookered into buying counterfeits from sellers on Amazon and other sites.

— michael corkery, New York Times, "How the Fingerling Caught On (Robot Grip and All) as 2017’s Hot Toy," 9 Dec. 2017
This past week, Fingerlings were out of stock on Walmart's website, while parents complained that they had been snookered into buying counterfeits from sellers on Amazon and other sites.

— the new york times, NOLA.com, "2017's hot toy: How the Fingerling - robot grip and all - caught on," 9 Dec. 2017
Last week, Fingerlings were out of stock on Wal-Mart’s website, while parents complained that they had been snookered into buying counterfeits from sellers on Amazon and other sites.

— michael corkery, The Seattle Times, "Fingerlings: How a $15 monkey became the year’s hottest toy," 9 Dec. 2017
The difference is that Horton was a pachyderm patsy, snookered into pro bono egg-tending by a ne’er-do-well bird, while Glennon will make a cool $16 million this year.

— pat fitzmaurice, SI.com, "Chicago Bears Fantasy Football 2017 Preview: Grab Jordan Howard," 2 Aug. 2017
Cops said Bender may have been on a bender, as he was snookered.

— barbara hijek, Sun-Sentinel.com, "FloriDUH: EEwwwww, return to sender!," 18 May 2017
Dole IPO: Less than four years after its billionaire chairman, David H. Murdock, took Dole Food Co. private — and snookered investors in the process, a judge said — the company is once again planning to tap the public markets.

— david lazarus, latimes.com, "California Inc.: Stop the presses — another writers' strike is looming," 1 May 2017
The U has grown fat over many years by feeding on a torrent of student loan money and by snookering the Legislature with threats of tuition increases.

— letter writers, Twin Cities, "Pioneer Press Letters to the Editor for February 7, 2017," 7 Feb. 2017

First Known Use of snooker

1925

SNOOKER Defined for English Language Learners

snooker

noun

Definition of snooker for English Language Learners

: a version of the game of pool that is played chiefly in Britain with a cue ball, 15 red balls, and 6 balls of other colors on a table that has 6 pockets