field goal

noun

1

: a score of three points in football made by drop-kicking or placekicking the ball over the crossbar from ordinary play

2

: a goal in basketball made while the ball is in play

Examples of field goal in a Sentence

He kicked a 20-yard field goal.

Recent Examples on the Web

But this time, the Cougars won, thanks to a defense that held Duke to one field goal on nine attempts in the final 10:31 and an offense that came through in the end. —Tim Casey, Forbes.com, 7 Apr. 2025

The Cougars only allow about 58 points per game and can ratchet up the pressure in the blink of an eye as the Blue Devils learned on Saturday – Duke made one free field goal in the final 10 minutes of its game against Houston. —Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 7 Apr. 2025

Duke made a grand total of one field goal over the last 10 1/2 minutes of this game. —CBS News, 6 Apr. 2025

Duke made a grand total of one field goal over the last 10½ minutes of the game. —Stephen Hawkins, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1883, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for field goal

• bankroll
• bedroll
• borehole
• cajole
• catchpole
• charcoal
• condole
• control
• dipole
• downhole
• enroll
• extol

Kids Definition

field goal

noun

1

: a score of three points in football made by kicking the ball over the crossbar during ordinary play

2

: basket sense 3b