Meaning and Origin
What does the name Tennis mean? Keep reading to find the user submitted meanings, dictionary definitions, and more.
Origin and Meaning of Tennis
User Submitted Origins
English
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International Interest
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Webster's Unabridged Dictionary
noun Ten"nis
A play in which a ball is driven to and fro, or kept in motion by striking it with a racket or with the open hand.
Etymology: OE. tennes tenies tenyse; of uncertain origin, perhaps fr. F. tenez hold or take it, fr. tenir to hold (see Tenable)
verb Ten"nis
To drive backward and forward, as a ball in playing tennis.
Other Dictionary Sources
- A game played with rackets by two or four players who hit a ball back and forth over a net that divides the court
Wiktionary
Old French tenez, second-person imperative of tenir (“hold”).
- (sports) A sport played by two players (or four in doubles), who alternately strike the ball over a net using racquets.
- (dated) A match in this sport.
- (obsolete) An earlier game in which a ball is driven to and fro, or kept in motion by striking it with a racquet or with the open hand.
tennis was also found in the following language(s): Catalan, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, French, Icelandic, Italian, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish