There are some common terms in English that come from either fencing or swordfighting. These include:
Many fencing terms come from French because of its popularity and the importance of French when dueling and swordfighting were at their peak.
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The term break point in tennis describes a stage in a game when the player who is not serving (the receiver) can win the game if they win the next point (i.e., when the score is 0-40, 15-40, or 30-40, or there is a “deuce” and the receiver has the “advantage”). If the receiver wins this point, they have “broken” their opponent’s serve.
In professional tennis, most games “go with serve,” which means that the server wins the game. This is because having the serve makes it easier to win a point.
A break point is therefore a significant stage in a set because if you “hold” (win) all your service games in a set, you only need to break your opponent’s serve once to win the set, by six games to four or seven games to five.
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A drop shot in tennis is a softly played shot that lands close to the net, forcing your opponent to rush forward from the back of the court to reach it. To be effective, a drop shot should be:
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A bagel in tennis is a slang term to describe a set that is won by six games to zero (“six love”). For example, “Alcaraz handed Smith a bagel in the final set.”
You can also use it as a verb: “Alcaraz bagelled Smith in the final set.”
If you’re new to tennis, QuillBot’s free AI chat can help you understand tennis terms like “a bagel.”
A Grand Slam in tennis is one of the four major tournaments: The Australian Open (played on courts with a hardcourt surface), the French Open (played on clay courts), the Wimbledon Championships (located in the UK and played on grass courts), or the US Open (played on courts with a hardcourt surface). For example, “She has missed the last two Grand Slams due to injury.”
“The Grand Slam” means winning all of these tournaments in the same calendar year (e.g., “Steffi Graf completed the Grand Slam in women’s singles in 1988”).
QuillBot’s free AI chat can help you understand tennis terms like Grand Slam if you’re new to the sport.
A Golden Slam in tennis is when a player wins all of the four major tournaments (the Grand Slams) and the Olympic or Paralympic gold medal in the same discipline in the same calendar year (e.g., “Diede de Groot completed the Golden Slam in 2021”).
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Basketball slang terms include:
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Some of the most common sports idioms in English include:
When you’re curious about the origin or meaning of different sports idioms, QuillBot’s AI Chat will provide instant answers, and it’s completely free to use.
Basketball betting terms include:
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The Caitlin Clark effect is a term for the impact of Caitlin Clark’s skill and success on the popularity of women’s basketball. Clark was a Point Guard for the University of Iowa Hawkeyes and began her WNBA career with the Indiana Fever in 2024.
During the 2023 and 2024 college women’s tournaments, Clark drew national attention by setting records for the most points and three-pointers. Her 2023 and 2024 NCAA championship games and her WNBA games have broken records for the most-watched women’s basketball games.
When you’re curious about basketball players and records, QuillBot’s free AI Chat can answer questions in seconds.
Some slang football terms (for North American football) include:
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Fantasy football is a game where each person creates a fantasy team with real NFL players (from different teams) and earns points based on each player’s performance in real NFL games. Some of the most important fantasy football terms are:
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Football betting involves predicting the outcome of games and placing wagers based on odds set by sportsbooks. Football betting terms include:
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Baseball pitchers use a variety of different pitches to make the hitter’s job harder (and prevent the other team from scoring). There are several baseball pitching terms for these techniques.
Whether you’re new to baseball or brushing up on baseball terms, QuillBot’s free AI Chat can provide instant answers about all things baseball.
The name of the Major League Baseball (MLB) championship is the World Series (with no apostrophe). “World” is a singular noun, and it’s not possessive. People sometimes mistakenly write “World’s Series,” because the event used to be called the “World’s Championship Series.”
These types of mistakes are common, but luckily, QuillBot’s free Grammar Checker can help you with correct spelling and punctuation.
Because the World Series only involves US teams (and one Canadian team), it’s no wonder that people often ask how the World Series got its name.
It’s called the World Series because when the first event took place in 1903, the US was the only place in the world with professional baseball games. Therefore, the winning team at that time would be the literal world champion. Now, baseball is an Olympic sport, and there are international baseball leagues.
When you’re curious about baseball’s history or baseball terms, QuillBot’s free AI Chat can instantly answer your questions.
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