Tennis Vocabulary List
| word | example sentence | meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ace | Andy won the match by serving a beautiful ace that was almost impossible to return. | a winning serve which the receiver fails to touch with his or her racket |
| advantage | With the score at deuce, Roger returned serve with a winner and the umpire announced, ‘Advantage Federer’. | a player who scores a point at ‘deuce’ has the advantage, meaning if they win the next point, they win the game |
| backhand | If your opponent is right-handed and has a weak backhand, hit the ball to his left if you can. | a stroke in which the ball is struck on the opposite side of the body to the racquet hand |
| ballperson ballboy/girl/kid |
When I was young I was a ‘ballboy’, and my son does the same job now, but he’s a ‘ballperson’. | youngsters who collect balls from the court and give them to players as required |
| baseline | If a player’s foot touches the baseline while serving, the serve is a foot-fault. | a line at each end of the court, marking the boundary of the playing area |
| break | I got off to good start by breaking my opponent’s serve in the first game of the match. | to beat an opponent in a game in which the opponent is serving |
| break point | The score is 30-40, so this point is a break point and if he wins it, he wins the game. | a point which will result in a break of service if it’s won by the receiver |
| crosscourt | Rafael played a beautiful crosscourt volley to win the match. | a shot in which the ball is hit diagonally across the court |
| deuce | The word deuce was used in real tennis for hundreds of years before the modern game developed. | a score of 40-40, after which a player must win two consecutive points to win the game |
| double fault | After serving a fault I was worried about serving a double fault, so my second serve was much slower. | two faults served in a row, resulting in the server losing the point |
| doubles | In a game of doubles, the outer line down each side of the court acts as the boundary. | format in which players play in teams of two |
| drop shot | Serena played a perfect drop shot that just got over the net and landed about one foot from it. | a gentle shot that just drops over the net |
| fault | Maria tried to hit her serve too hard and it missed the court and was a fault. | a missed serve, served into the net or served outside the correct service box |
| forehand | Chris has a very strong forehand, so his opponents play to his backhand more. | a shot hit from the racket-arm side of the body |
| game | Venus won the match by two sets to one, and she won both sets by six games to four. | in scoring, a game is won by winning points, a set is won by winning games, and a match is won by winning sets |
| game point | When the score gets to game point, players often get nervous and make simple mistakes. | a point that will end the game if it is won by the leading player |
| Grand Slam | A career Grand Slam means a player has won each Grand Slam tournament at least once in their career. | the four major tournaments; Wimbledon and the French, U.S. and Australian Opens |
| groundstroke | Nadal is strong and he uses powerful groundstokes to keep his opponents on the run. | a shot hit from the back court after the ball has bounced; the standard shot in tennis |
| let | The umpire heard the serve clip the net as it went over, so she called a let. | a shot that must be replayed, such as a serve that touches the net |
| line judge | The line judge said the ball was in, but the umpire overruled him and called it out. | an official who judges whether or not shots land in the court |
| lob | Her lob flew high into the air and dropped into the back of the court, just inside the baseline. | a shot that is hit in a high arc, usually over the opponent’s head |
| love | After starting his service game with a double fault, the score is love-fifteen. | zero (this meaning is used in tennis only) |
| match point | Ana had her first three match points saved, but she won the fourth. | a point that will end the match if it is won by the leading player |
| mixed doubles | Is there a competition for mixed doubles in Tennis in the Olympic Games? | doubles format in which each team is made up of one female and one male player |
| net | At the end of the match, the players jogged to the net and shook hands. | the woven barrier dividing a court into halves, over which the ball must be hit |
| racket / racquet | Rackets used to be made of wood, but now they’re made of materials like carbon fibre and titanium. | a stringed ‘bat’ that players hold and use to hit the ball |
| rally | The longest rally in the match went on for 22 shots before a winner was hit. | a long series of shots |
| receiver | Most receivers stand behind the baseline when they’re waiting for a serve. | the player receiving serves |
| return | Rafael’s serve was good, but Roger’s return was even better and he won the point. | to hit a shot back to the opponent |
| serve | Andy Roddick wins many points with his powerful serve. | the shot that begins each point, in which the server hits the ball after tossing it into the air |
| set | Elena won the first set, but Maria took the next two sets to win the match. | in scoring, a player must win at least six games to win a set |
| set point | Even top players get tense or ‘tight’ on set points. | a point that, if won by the leading player, will win him or her the game and the set |
| tiebreaker | In a tiebreaker, the winner is the first player with at least seven points, and a two-point lead. | a game format used to quickly finish a set that’s tied at six games each |
| umpire | The umpire sits in a tall chair at the side of the court, near the net. | the official who is in overall charge of a match |
| volley | Volleys can be hard to control if there’s a lot of spin on the ball. | a shot on which the ball is hit before it bounces |
