tennis

noun

ten·​nis ˈte-nəs 

often attributive

1

: an indoor or outdoor game that is played with rackets and a light elastic ball by two players or pairs of players on a level court (as of clay or grass) divided by a low net

2

: court tennis

Examples of tennis in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The tennis star has previously opened up about being a mother of two. — Juliana Ukiomogbe, InStyle, 18 Sep. 2026

Kwon Soon-woo beat Dhakshineswar Suresh 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 and then Hyeon Chung beat Sumit Nagal 2-6, 6-4, 7-5 at Seoul's Olympic tennis center. — ABC News, 18 Sep. 2026

The Croation tennis player shares the accessories that defined her US Open 2026 experience. — Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 17 Sep. 2026

The materials appeared in Budweiser cardholders and Stella Artois tennis racket sleeves. — Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 17 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English tenetz, tenys, perhaps borrowed from Anglo-French tenez, 2nd person plural imperative of tenir "to hold" — more at tenant entry 1

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing tennis

• court tennis
• deck tennis
• lawn tennis
• paddle tennis
• platform tennis
• squash tennis
• table tennis
• tennis bracelet
• tennis court
• tennis elbow
• tennis shoe

Rhymes for tennis

• menace

Kids Definition

tennis

noun

ten·​nis ˈten-əs 

: a game played with rackets and a light elastic ball by two players or two pairs of players on a level court divided by a low net