handball

B1 · Intermediate Countable noun Sports

n. in football (soccer), the mistake of touching the ball with your hand or arm.

n. an infraction in association football occurring when a player, other than the goalkeeper within their own penalty area, deliberately touches the ball with their hand or arm.

“The referee gave a penalty because the defender committed a handball in the box.”

“The VAR review confirmed a handball, as the defender's arm was in an unnatural position when the cross struck him.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate Uncountable noun Sports American English · British English

n. a game where you hit a small ball against a wall using your hand.

n. a game played in a walled court where players hit a small rubber ball against a wall with their hands; common in Ireland and the US.

“We spent our summer afternoons playing handball against the side of the school building.”

“American handball is traditionally played in a four-wall court, though one-wall variations remain popular in urban parks across New York City.”

C1 · Advanced Informal · Slang · Dialect

v. to give a difficult job or a problem to someone else because you do not want to do it.

v. to delegate or transfer an unwanted task, responsibility, or difficult question to another person, typically to avoid personal burden.

“My boss tried to handball the difficult client meeting to me at the last minute.”

“The minister attempted to handball the controversial inquiry to a junior staffer, hoping to distance himself from the inevitable public backlash.”