# tennis

Pronunciation: US say "TEN-is" /ˈtɛnɪs/; UK

## Noun

1. A sport in which two players, or four in doubles, hit a ball back and forth over a net using rackets.
   - Simple: A game where two or four players hit a ball over a net with rackets.
   - _Tennis demands quick footwork and sharp reflexes._
   - _He took up tennis in college and still plays competitively on weekends._

## Verb

4. To drive something backward and forward, like a tennis ball batted between players.
   - Simple: To knock something back and forth, like players hitting a ball over a net.
   - _Rival newspapers tennised the rumor back and forth for a week._
   - _Strong currents tennis the small boats between the two piers._

## Noun

2. A match in the sport of tennis. *(dated)*
   - Simple: A match or game of tennis, not the sport in general.
   - _After tea there was tennis on the south lawn._
   - _The colonel proposed tennis before dinner, weather permitting._
5. An early ball game played with a racket or an open hand to keep the ball in motion or send it back and forth. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: An old game where players hit a ball back and forth with a racket or open hand.
   - _Henry wagered ten crowns on a game of tennis in the enclosed court._
   - _The apprentices kept the ball aloft at tennis, striking it with their bare palms._

## Verb

3. To play tennis. *(dated)*
   - Simple: To play the game of tennis.
   - _The guests tennis on the lawn while the others play croquet._
   - _We tennised all morning, then swam in the lake before lunch._

## Origin

From Middle English tennys (also teneys, tenis), taken from Old French tenez, the second-person plural imperative of tenir, meaning 'to hold'.

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