ATHLETICS

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does athletics mean? 

• ATHLETICS (noun)
  The noun ATHLETICS has 3 senses:

1. an active diversion requiring physical exertion and competition

2. a contest between athletes

3. participation in sports events as an extracurricular activity

  Familiarity information: ATHLETICS used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• ATHLETICS (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

An active diversion requiring physical exertion and competition

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

athletics; sport

Hypernyms ("athletics" is a kind of...):

diversion; recreation (an activity that diverts or amuses or stimulates)

Domain member category:

offside ((sport) the mistake of occupying an illegal position on the playing field (in football, soccer, ice hockey, field hockey, etc.))

wipeout (a spill in some sport (as a fall from a bicycle or while skiing or being capsized on a surfboard))

flip; pass; toss ((sports) the act of throwing the ball to another member of your team)

daisy cutter (a batted or served ball that skims along close to the ground)

call ((sports) the decision made by an umpire or referee)

birling; logrolling (rotating a log rapidly in the water (as a competitive sport))

shot; stroke ((sports) the act of swinging or striking at a ball with a club or racket or bat or cue or hand)

position ((in team sports) the role assigned to an individual player)

foul (an act that violates the rules of a sport)

personal foul (a foul that involves unnecessarily rough contact (as in basketball or football))

possession ((sport) the act of controlling the ball (or puck))

save ((sports) the act of preventing the opposition from scoring)

press box (box reserved for reporters (as at a sports event))

tuck ((sports) a bodily position adopted in some sports (such as diving or skiing) in which the knees are bent and the thighs are drawn close to the chest)

game plan ((sports) a plan for achieving an objective in some sport)

won-lost record ((sports) a record of win versus losses)

English; side ((sports) the spin given to a ball by striking it on one side or releasing it with a sharp twist)

series ((sports) several contests played successively by the same teams)

trial ((sports) a preliminary competition to determine qualifications)

defence; defending team; defense ((sports) the team that is trying to prevent the other team from scoring)

bench warmer ((sports) a substitute who seldom plays)

coach; handler; manager ((sports) someone in charge of training an athlete or a team)

free agent ((sports) a professional athlete who is free to sign a contract to play for any team)

iron man; ironman (a strong man of exceptional physical endurance)

ref; referee ((sports) the chief official (as in boxing or American football) who is expected to ensure fair play)

scout; talent scout (someone employed to discover and recruit talented persons (especially in the worlds of entertainment or sports))

shooter ((sports) a player who drives or kicks a ball at the goal (or a basketball player who shoots at the basket))

timekeeper; timer ((sports) an official who keeps track of the time elapsed)

deficit ((sports) the score by which a team or individual is losing)

lead ((sports) the score by which a team or individual is winning)

average ((sports) the ratio of successful performances to opportunities)

free agency ((sports) the state of a professional athlete who is free to negotiate a contract to play for any team)

regulation time ((sports) the normal prescribed duration of a game)

sudden death ((sports) overtime in which play is stopped as soon as one contestant scores; e.g. football and golf)

bout; round; turn ((sports) a division during which one team is on the offensive)

surge (see one's performance improve)

seed (distribute (players or teams) so that outstanding teams or players will not meet in the early rounds)

outclass (cause to appear in a lower class)

call (indicate a decision in regard to)

curl (play the Scottish game of curling)

start (play in the starting lineup)

field (play as a fielder)

shoot (score)

referee; umpire (be a referee or umpire in a sports competition)

drop (lose (a game))

down (bring down or defeat (an opponent))

bandy (toss or strike a ball back and forth)

double-team (cover with two defensive players)

submarine (bring down with a blow to the legs)

kick (drive or propel with the foot)

punt (kick the ball)

follow through (carry a stroke to natural completion after hitting or releasing a ball)

kill (hit with great force)

kill (hit with so much force as to make a return impossible, in racket games)

drive (hit very hard, as by swinging a bat horizontally)

racket (hit (a ball) with a racket)

carry; dribble (propel)

cut (hit (a ball) with a spin so that it turns in the opposite direction)

box (engage in a boxing match)

spar (box lightly)

spar (fight with spurs)

prizefight (box for a prize or money)

shadowbox (go through boxing motions without an opponent)

tramp (travel on foot, especially on a walking expedition)

hike (walk a long way, as for pleasure or physical exercise)

mountaineer (climb mountains for pleasure as a sport)

abseil; rappel; rope down (descend by means of a rappel)

backpack; pack (hike with a backpack)

run (run with the ball; in such sports as football)

jog (run for exercise)

skate (move along on skates)

spread-eagle (execute a spread eagle on skates, with arms and legs stretched out)

ice skate (move along on ice skates)

figure skate (dance on skates)

roller skate (travel on shoes with steel or rubber rollers attached to their soles)

skateboard (ride on a flat board with rollers attached to the bottom)

Rollerblade (travel on shoes with a single line of rubber wheels attached to their soles)

speed skate (race on skates)

ski (move along on skis)

schuss (ski downhill)

sled; sleigh (ride (on) a sled)

bob; bobsled (ride a bobsled)

luge; toboggan (move along on a luge or toboggan)

water ski (ride water skis)

scull (propel with sculls)

canoe (travel by canoe)

kayak (travel in a small canoe)

paddle (propel with a paddle)

surf; surfboard (ride the waves of the sea with a surfboard)

windsurf (ride standing on a surfboard with an attached sail, on water)

skin-dive (swim underwater with no breathing apparatus other than a snorkel)

jackknife (dive into the water bending the body at the waist at a right angle, like a jackknife)

snorkel (dive with a snorkel)

ski jump (jump on skis)

hurdle (jump a hurdle)

ride the bench; warm the bench (be out of the game)

run (make without a miss)

sit out (not participate in (an activity, such as a dance or a sports event))

out of play ((of a ball) not available to be played during a game)

man-to-man; one-on-one (being a system of play in which an individual defensive player guards an individual offensive player)

loose ((of a ball in sport) not in the possession or control of any player)

legal (allowed by official rules)

disqualified (barred from competition for violation of rules)

home (used of your own ground)

away (used of an opponent's ground)

most-valuable (designating the player judged to be the most important to the sport)

ineligible (prohibited by official rules)

defending (attempting to or designed to prevent an opponent from winning or scoring)

onside (not offside; being within the prescribed area of play)

offside; offsides (illegally beyond a prescribed line or area or ahead of the ball or puck)

underarm; underhand; underhanded (with hand brought forward and up from below shoulder level)

overarm; overhand; overhanded (with hand brought forward and down from above shoulder level)

upfield (away from the defending teams' end of the playing field)

downfield; downfield (toward or in the defending team's end of the playing field)

at home (on the home team's field)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "athletics"):

rock climbing (the sport or pastime of scaling rock masses on mountain sides (especially with the help of ropes and special equipment))

team sport (a sport that involves competition between teams of players)

spectator sport (a sport that many people find entertaining to watch)

judo (a sport adapted from jujitsu (using principles of not resisting) and similar to wrestling; developed in Japan)

athletic game (a game involving athletic activity)

blood sport (sport that involves killing animals (especially hunting))

cycling (the sport of traveling on a bicycle or motorcycle)

equitation; horseback riding; riding (the sport of sitting on the back of a horse while controlling its movements)

racing (the sport of engaging in contests of speed)

skating (the sport of gliding on skates)

archery (the sport of shooting arrows with a bow)

funambulism; tightrope walking (walking on a tightrope or slack rope)

contact sport (a sport that necessarily involves body contact between opposing players)

field sport; outdoor sport (a sport that is played outdoors)

gymnastic exercise; gymnastics (a sport that involves exercises intended to display strength and balance and agility)

track and field (participating in athletic sports performed on a running track or on the field associated with it)

skiing (a sport in which participants must travel on skis)

aquatics; water sport (sports that involve bodies of water)

row; rowing (the act of rowing as a sport)

sledding (the sport of riding on a sled or sleigh)

Derivation:

athletic (vigorously active)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A contest between athletes

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Synonyms:

athletic competition; athletic contest; athletics

Hypernyms ("athletics" is a kind of...):

competition; contest (an occasion on which a winner is selected from among two or more contestants)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "athletics"):

decathlon (an athletic contest consisting of ten different events)

Olympiad; Olympic Games; Olympics (the modern revival of the ancient games held once every 4 years in a selected country)

Special Olympics (an athletic contest modeled after the Olympic Games but intended for mentally or physically handicapped persons)

prelim; preliminary (a minor match preceding the main event)

pentathlon (an athletic contest consisting of five different events)

meet; sports meeting (a meeting at which a number of athletic contests are held)

hop-step-and-jump; triple jump (an athletic contest in which a competitor must perform successively a hop and a step and a jump in continuous movement)

tug-of-war (a contest in which teams pull of opposite ends of a rope; the team dragged across a central line loses)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Participation in sports events as an extracurricular activity

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("athletics" is a kind of...):

extracurricular activity (educational activities not falling within the scope of the regular curriculum)

 Context examples 

He did take an active interest in student athletics.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

Exercise Physiology is the identification of physiological mechanisms underlying physical activity, the comprehensive delivery of treatment services concerned with the analysis, improvement, and maintenance of health and fitness, rehabilitation of heart disease and other chronic diseases and/or disabilities, and the professional guidance and counsel of athletes and others interested in athletics, sports training, and human adaptability to acute and chronic exercise.

(Exercise Physiology, NCI Thesaurus)