Illustration of forehand
- forehand 3
fore·hand
ˈfȯr-ˌhand 
1
archaic
: superior position : advantage
2
: the part of a horse that is before the rider
3
: a forehand stroke (as in tennis or racquets)
also
: the side on which such strokes are made
1
obsolete
: done or given in advance : prior
2
: made with the palm of the hand turned in the direction in which the hand is moving
a forehand tennis stroke
: with a forehand stroke
Examples of forehand in a Sentence
Noun
She hit a forehand across the court.
Recent Examples on the Web
Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 10 Apr. 2024
The 20-year-old Alcaraz ended the match with 23 winners – 19 of which were on his forehand side – compared to Medvedev’s 11 and won 73% of his service points to the Russian’s 56%.
—George Ramsay, CNN, 18 Mar. 2024
Zheng’s forehand response to Sabalenka’s forehand was often late, and there were times when Sabalenka’s inside-out forehand to Zheng’s backhand seemed to knock the racquet from her grip.
—Gerald Marzorati, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2024
After missing her first match point when Gauff saved with a forehand winner to end a 12-shot rally, Sabalenka earned a second match point with an ace and clinched it after 1 hour, 42 minutes.
—John Pye, USA TODAY, 25 Jan. 2024
Gilbert did not share the universal fixation with Gauff’s forehand, deemed to be her one weak spot.
—Abby Aguirre, Vogue, 6 Mar. 2024
Zheng is athletic and unwaveringly competitive, with a strong, if inconsistent, serve and a penetrating topspin forehand.
—Gerald Marzorati, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2024
That second serve of 143 miles per hour, and the frightening forehand the kid ripped across the court.
—Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2023
Our sport features frequent hand battles at the net where players take heavy swings at the ball and send full-force forehands directly at their opponents, standing a mere 14-feet away across the net.
—Todd Boss, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024
Gerald Marzorati, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2024
Alone in front of Shesterkin (20 saves), Nosek went forehand-backhand and slipped the puck past the netminder’s left pad.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 4 Mar. 2023
Noun
Granlund then found Fabian Zetterlund with a pass into the Flames zone, all while Eklund beat his man to the Calgary net and went forehand to backhand to beat Flames goalie and Gilroy native Dustin Wolf.
—Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 10 Apr. 2024
The 20-year-old Alcaraz ended the match with 23 winners – 19 of which were on his forehand side – compared to Medvedev’s 11 and won 73% of his service points to the Russian’s 56%.
—George Ramsay, CNN, 18 Mar. 2024
Zheng’s forehand response to Sabalenka’s forehand was often late, and there were times when Sabalenka’s inside-out forehand to Zheng’s backhand seemed to knock the racquet from her grip.
—Gerald Marzorati, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2024
After missing her first match point when Gauff saved with a forehand winner to end a 12-shot rally, Sabalenka earned a second match point with an ace and clinched it after 1 hour, 42 minutes.
—John Pye, USA TODAY, 25 Jan. 2024
Gilbert did not share the universal fixation with Gauff’s forehand, deemed to be her one weak spot.
—Abby Aguirre, Vogue, 6 Mar. 2024
Zheng is athletic and unwaveringly competitive, with a strong, if inconsistent, serve and a penetrating topspin forehand.
—Gerald Marzorati, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2024
That second serve of 143 miles per hour, and the frightening forehand the kid ripped across the court.
—Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2023
Our sport features frequent hand battles at the net where players take heavy swings at the ball and send full-force forehands directly at their opponents, standing a mere 14-feet away across the net.
—Todd Boss, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024
Adjective
Zheng’s forehand response to Sabalenka’s forehand was often late, and there were times when Sabalenka’s inside-out forehand to Zheng’s backhand seemed to knock the racquet from her grip.
—Gerald Marzorati, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2024
Alone in front of Shesterkin (20 saves), Nosek went forehand-backhand and slipped the puck past the netminder’s left pad.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 4 Mar. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'forehand.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near forehand
Cite this Entry
“Forehand.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/forehand. Accessed 27 Apr. 2024.
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