# NFL

/ˈɛˌnɛˈfɛɫ/ (US)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/nfl
Updated: 2026-08-08

## Senses

### 1. sports league

noun · CEFR B1 · American English

Stands for National Football League. This is the main professional league for American football in the USA.

For teachers: Abbreviation for National Football League. Refers to the highest professional level of American football in the United States.

- Many people in the US spend their Sundays watching NFL games on TV.
- The NFL has expanded its global reach by hosting several regular-season games in London and Munich each year.

Usage: Usually used with the definite article 'the'.

### 2. American football

noun · CEFR B2 · British English · Informal

a common way for people in the UK to refer to the sport of American football.

For teachers: A metonymic use where the league name represents the entire sport of American football. This usage is common in British English to distinguish it from association football.

- He started playing NFL at a local club in London last year.
- While soccer remains the dominant sport, interest in the NFL has grown significantly among British sports fans over the last decade.

Usage: Often used as an uncountable noun without an article when referring to the sport generally.

### 3. mathematical theorem

noun · CEFR C1 · Technical · Academic

Stands for no free lunch. It is a rule in math and computing that says you cannot get something for nothing.

For teachers: Abbreviation for no free lunch. Refers to a set of theorems in mathematical optimisation and computing which state that no single algorithm performs better than all others across every possible problem.

- The professor explained the NFL theorem during our computer science lecture.
- In the context of machine learning, the NFL theorem implies that we must make assumptions about the data to choose an effective model.

Usage: Usually appears in the phrase 'NFL theorem' or 'NFL results'.

## Examples

- Millions of people watch the NFL every Sunday.
- The NFL season culminates in the Super Bowl, which is one of the most-watched sporting events in the world.
- While the NFL dominates the American sports landscape in terms of television ratings and revenue, it faces ongoing scrutiny regarding player safety and long-term health outcomes.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.