# football

Pronunciation: say "FUUT-bawl" US /ˈfʊtbɔl/, UK /ˈfʊtbɔːl/; AUS say "FUUT-bohl" /ˈfʊtboːl/

## Noun

1. A game played by two teams of eleven on a 100-yard field, each trying to advance an ovoid ball into the opponent's end zone. *(US)*
   - Simple: A team game where players try to move an oval ball into the other team's end zone by running or throwing.
   - _The college football season culminates in a series of bowl games._
   - _Professional football in the United States draws enormous television audiences._
2. Any of several team sports in which players try to move a ball into a goal or scoring area defended by the other team; also, the way such a sport is played.
   - Simple: A team sport where players try to get a ball into the other team's goal, or the way it is played.
   - _Whether it means soccer, rugby or the American game, football draws huge crowds wherever it is played._
   - _Different regions developed their own versions of football over the centuries._
3. A game in which two teams each try to get a round ball into the opposing team's goal, primarily by kicking it. *(Africa, Caribbean, South Asia, UK)*
   - Simple: A team game where two sides try to kick a round ball into the other team's goal.
   - _Across Europe, football fills stadiums every weekend._
   - _The club has dominated English football for over a decade._
4. The ball used in any of the games that go by the name football.
   - Simple: The ball that players use in any game called football, often round or oval depending on the sport.
   - _The referee inspected each football before kickoff._
   - _A well-worn football sat in the corner of the locker room._
5. A game played by two teams of twelve on a 110-yard field, each trying to move an ovoid ball into the opposing team's end zone. *(Canada)*
   - Simple: A team game like American football, but with twelve players on a longer, wider field.
   - _The Grey Cup is the championship game of Canadian football._
   - _Football in Canada differs from the American game in several key rules._
6. A fast-paced Australian code played on a large oval ground, with two teams of eighteen kicking or handballing an ovoid ball to score between goalposts. *(Australia)*
   - Simple: A fast Australian team game played on a large oval field, where players kick or punch a ball to score.
   - _The AFL grand final is the highlight of the football calendar in Australia._
   - _Football dominates sports coverage across Victoria each winter._
7. A field game popular in Ireland, played by two teams with rules similar to hurling but using the hands and feet instead of a stick, with a round ball. *(Ireland)*
   - Simple: An Irish team game where players use hands and feet to send a round ball into goals or over crossbars.
   - _Croke Park fills to capacity for the biggest football matches of the season._
   - _Football and hurling share many of the same skills and traditions._
8. Rugby, either rugby league or rugby union, in places where rugby is the main kind of football played. *(Australia, New Zealand)*
   - Simple: A name for rugby (rugby league or rugby union) in places where it is the main kind of football.
   - _In the New Zealand town where he grew up, football meant rugby union, and he played it every winter until he left for college._
   - _The football season here is dominated by the local rugby clubs._
9. An issue that is repeatedly passed back and forth between opposing parties, particularly in argument or debate, rather than resolved.
   - Simple: Something that people keep passing back and forth in an argument instead of dealing with it.
   - _Immigration has long been a political football in national campaigns._
   - _The proposal became a football between the two departments._
10. A leather briefcase carried near the US President by a military aide, containing classified information needed to authorize a nuclear attack. *(slang, US)*
   - Simple: A briefcase carried near the US President that holds secret plans for launching nuclear war.
   - _Aides photographed near the motorcade were carrying the football._
   - _During the summit, the football remained within arm's reach at all times._

## Verb

11. To take part in a game of football, especially as a player. *(rare)*
   - Simple: To take part in a game of football.

## Origin

From Middle English fotbal, footbal, equivalent to foot + ball. The name may refer to kicking a ball with the feet, or to the game being played on foot as opposed to on horseback. The use for the briefcase is often said to come from "dropkick", supposedly the code name of an early nuclear war plan, but no original source for that story has been found.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/football (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).