1
: a sudden or violent twist or wrench of a joint with stretching or tearing of ligaments
2
: a sprained condition
sprained; spraining; sprains
: to injure by a sudden or severe twist
Examples of sprain in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 30 May 2026
Another young receiver, Jordan Watkins, looked good last year before suffering a high-ankle sprain in the preseason opener and falling to the bottom of the depth chart as a result.
—Matt Barrows, New York Times, 29 May 2026
Jen McCaffrey, New York Times, 16 May 2026
The 24-year-old Cardoso sprained his ankle during training last week.
—ABC News, 11 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for sprain
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
Speaking to Rob Bradford on the Baseball Isn’t Boring podcast prior to Thursday’s game against the Atlanta Braves, Anthony clarified the exact nature of his injury, which was officially announced by the team as a right wrist sprain.
—Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 30 May 2026
Another young receiver, Jordan Watkins, looked good last year before suffering a high-ankle sprain in the preseason opener and falling to the bottom of the depth chart as a result.
—Matt Barrows, New York Times, 29 May 2026
Verb
Anthony sprained a ligament in his ring finger, which makes gripping a bat difficult.
—Jen McCaffrey, New York Times, 16 May 2026
The 24-year-old Cardoso sprained his ankle during training last week.
—ABC News, 11 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for sprain
Cite this Entry
“Sprain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sprain. Accessed 2 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sprain
1 of 2 noun1
: a sudden or severe twisting of a joint with stretching or tearing of ligaments
2
: a condition that results from a sprain and is usually marked by pain and swelling
sprain
2 of 2 verb
: to injure by a sudden or severe twist
Medical Definition
sprain
1 of 2 noun
: a sudden or violent twist or wrench of a joint causing the stretching or tearing of ligaments and often rupture of blood vessels with hemorrhage into the tissues
also
: the condition resulting from a sprain that is usually marked by swelling, inflammation, hemorrhage, and discoloration compare strain entry 3 sense b
sprain
2 of 2 transitive verb
: to weaken (a joint or ligament) by sudden and violent twisting or wrenching : stretch (ligaments) injuriously without dislocation of the joint
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
