ENGLISH
REFERENCE

tennis

n.
US //ˈtɛnəs// UK //tˈɛnɪs// ten·nis
  1. 1 the sport (n.)
    A1 Beginner Sport

    a sport played with racquets and a ball on a court divided by a net.

    a racket sport played on a rectangular court with a net across the center, involving either two players or two pairs of players.

    Example

    She plays tennis every Saturday morning at the local park.

    Example

    The professional tennis circuit requires athletes to maintain peak physical condition while adapting to various court surfaces like grass, clay, and hard court.

    Usage

    Usually uncountable when referring to the sport itself.

Origin

From Middle English tennys, teneys, tenis, from Old French tenez (second-person plural imperative of tenir (“to hold”)).

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Idioms1 entry

Last updated June 19, 2026