sport
[ spawrt, spohrt ]
/ spɔrt, spoʊrt /
noun
an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature, as racing, baseball, tennis, golf, bowling, wrestling, boxing, hunting, fishing, etc.
a particular form of this, especially in the out of doors.
sports, (used with a singular verb)
such athletic activities collectively: Sports is important in my life.
diversion; recreation; pleasant pastime.
jest; fun; mirth; pleasantry: What he said in sport was taken seriously.
mockery; ridicule; derision: They made sport of him.
an object of derision; laughingstock.
something treated lightly or tossed about like a plaything.
something or someone subject to the whims or vicissitudes of fate, circumstances, etc.
a sportsman.
Informal.
a person who behaves in a sportsmanlike, fair, or admirable manner; an accommodating person: He was a sport and took his defeat well.
Informal.
a person who is interested in sports as an occasion for gambling; gambler.
Informal.
a flashy person; one who wears showy clothes, affects smart manners, pursues pleasurable pastimes, or the like; a bon vivant.
Biology.
an organism or part that shows an unusual or singular deviation from the normal or parent type; mutation.
Obsolete.
amorous dalliance.
adjective Also sports.
of, relating to, or used in sports or a particular sport:sport fishing.
suitable for outdoor or informal wear: sport clothes.
verb (used without object)
to amuse oneself with some pleasant pastime or recreation.
to play, frolic, or gambol, as a child or an animal.
to engage in some open-air or athletic pastime or sport.
to trifle or treat lightly: to sport with another's emotions.
to mock, scoff, or tease: to sport at suburban life.
Botany.
to mutate.
verb (used with object)
to pass (time) in amusement or sport.
to spend or squander lightly or recklessly (often followed by away).
Informal.
to wear, display, carry, etc., especially with ostentation; show off: to sport a new mink coat.
Archaic.
to amuse (especially oneself).
Idioms for sport
sport one's oak.
oak(def 5).
Origin of sport
1350–1400; Middle English; aphetic variant of
disport
SYNONYMS FOR sport
OTHER WORDS FROM sport
sport·ful, adjective
sport·ful·ly, adverb
sport·ful·ness, noun
sport·less, adjective
out·sport, verb (used with object)
un·sport·ed, adjective
un·sport·ful, adjective
Words nearby sport
Example sentences from the Web for sport
Cricket is a sport enjoyed by hundreds of millions around the globe, mainly in former British colonies.
When he reaches a low point in his career, in 1997, he writes that he “even contemplated moving away from the sport completely.”
Sachin Tendulkar may be one of the most brilliant players in the sport, but he struggles to liven up his memoirs.
The sport of surfing is a very sexy sport, beautiful people on beautiful beaches in minimal clothing.
Anastasia Ashley, Surfer-Cum-Model, Rides The Viral Internet Wave |James Joiner |December 23, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Like I said, as a team we drew attention to the sport in a way no one ever has.
This sport may be carried on from the 24th of July till October, from the rising to the setting of the sun.
The Natural History of Cage Birds |J. M. BechsteinBut tandem driving is too good a sport to be confined to the show ring.
Riding and Driving |Edward L. AndersonOur day's sport, besides the monkey, was confined to sundry small green parrots and a few toucans.
A Naturalist's Voyage Round the World |Charles DarwinThe three friends agreed, in sport, that they would each one day commit to writing his peculiar interpretation of its design.
The Broken Cup |Johann Heinrich Daniel ZschokkeIt seemed to her she was being flicked in sport with tickling switches.
The Song of Songs |Hermann Sudermann
British Dictionary definitions for sport
sport
/ (spɔːt) /
noun
an individual or group activity pursued for exercise or pleasure, often involving the testing of physical capabilities and taking the form of a competitive game such as football, tennis, etc
such activities considered collectively
any particular pastime indulged in for pleasure
the pleasure derived from a pastime, esp hunting, shooting, or fishing
we had good sport today
playful or good-humoured joking
to say a thing in sport
derisive mockery or the object of such mockery
to make sport of someone
someone or something that is controlled by external influences
the sport of fate
informal (sometimes qualified by good, bad, etc)
a person who reacts cheerfully in the face of adversity, esp a good loser
informal
a person noted for being scrupulously fair and abiding by the rules of a game
informal
a person who leads a merry existence, esp a gambler
he's a bit of a sport
Australian and NZ informal
a form of address used esp between males
biology
- an animal or plant that differs conspicuously in one or more aspects from other organisms of the same species, usually because of a mutation
- an anomalous characteristic of such an organism
verb
(tr) informal
to wear or display in an ostentatious or proud manner
she was sporting a new hat
(intr)
to skip about or frolic happily
to amuse (oneself), esp in outdoor physical recreation
(intr often foll by with)
to dally or trifle (with)
(tr often foll by away) rare
to squander (time or money)
sporting one's life away
(intr often foll by with) archaic
to make fun (of)
(intr) biology
to produce or undergo a mutation
See also
sports
Derived forms of sport
sporter, noun sportful, adjective sportfully, adverb sportfulness, nounWord Origin for sport
C15
sporten, variant of
disporten to
disport