basketball
noun
bas·ket·ball
ˈba-skit-ˌbȯl 
often attributive
: a usually indoor court game between two teams of usually five players each who score by tossing an inflated ball through a raised goal
also
: the ball used in this game
Examples of basketball in a Sentence
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Angel Reese #5 of the Chicago Sky shoots over Stephanie Talbot #7 and Tiffany Hayes #15 of the Golden State Valkyries during the first half of a WNBA basketball game at Chase Center on June 27, 2025 in San Francisco, California.
—
Kilty Cleary, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Aug. 2025
The last high-profile prisoner swap between Russia and the U.S. took place more than two years prior, when American basketball player Brittney Griner was exchanged for a notorious Russian arms dealer, Viktor Bout.
—Kathryn Palmer, USA Today, 1 Aug. 2025
Out back, Barack Obama repurposed the tennis court for basketball.
—Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 1 Aug. 2025
Jones, also a fine basketball player, is healthy and poised for a terrific junior year.
—Steve Fryer, Oc Register, 31 July 2025
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Kilty Cleary, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Aug. 2025
The last high-profile prisoner swap between Russia and the U.S. took place more than two years prior, when American basketball player Brittney Griner was exchanged for a notorious Russian arms dealer, Viktor Bout.
—Kathryn Palmer, USA Today, 1 Aug. 2025
Out back, Barack Obama repurposed the tennis court for basketball.
—Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 1 Aug. 2025
Jones, also a fine basketball player, is healthy and poised for a terrific junior year.
—Steve Fryer, Oc Register, 31 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for basketball
Cite this Entry
“Basketball.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/basketball. Accessed 8 Aug. 2025.
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basketball
noun
bas·ket·ball
-ˌbȯl
: a court game in which each of two teams tries to toss an inflated ball through a raised goal
also
: the ball used in this game
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