tennis

noun

ten·nis ˈte-nəs

often attributive

: an indoor or outdoor game that is played with rackets and a light elastic ball by two players or pairs of players on a level court (as of clay or grass) divided by a low net

: court tennis

Examples of tennis in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

It’s all but forgotten in tennis history, except for those involved. —

Charlie Eccleshare, The Athletic, 17 Jan. 2025 Unrivaled’s investors include tennis star Coco Gauff, NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo, private equity billionaire and former Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry, University of South Carolina coach Dawn Staley, and former Warner Bros. CEO Ann Sarnoff. —

Sean Gregory, TIME, 17 Jan. 2025 The social media star wore pieces courtesy of Wilson, including tennis kits by the brand. —

Julia Teti, WWD, 16 Jan. 2025 The match lasted 4 hours, 48 minutes and ended at 2:54 a.m. local time, the sixth-latest major finish in tennis history. —

Adam Zagoria, Forbes, 16 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for tennis

Word History

Etymology

Middle English tenetz, tenys, perhaps borrowed from Anglo-French tenez, 2nd person plural imperative of tenir "to hold" — more at tenant entry 1

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler

The first known use of tennis was in the 15th century

See more words from the same century