Over the years, many slang expressions have entered American English from the sports world. Three of the sports to give us the most slang are Baseball, Football and Basketball. Can you identify each kind of ball?
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Next, try to identify each of the following common sports expressions which have entered the English language, and guess from which sport they came. Can you guess how they are used in non-sports conversations?
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A foul ball to get sacked Hit a home run nothing but net get to third base
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in the bullpen a pinch hitter a switch hitter jump ball the whole nine yards strike out |
jump ball time to punt built like a linebacker a Hail Mary pass a double play huddle up |
Most American sports use lots of equiptment. Try to identify some of the equiptment used in each sport:
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roundball short pants homeplate sneakers mitt
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horsehide chains rim bases helmets |
pigskin bat backboard goal posts shoulder pads
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Now try to identify the different player positions for each sport:
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pitcher shooting guard catcher punter third baseman
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center shortstop wide receiver linebacker safety |
fullback power forward outfielder swingman point guard
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Finally, click on the link below and use the dictionaries to fill in the following sentences. These links are from Sports Illustrated Magazine, and require the Shockwave plugin.
That was a really bad shot. It didn't go anywhere near the basket. You threw up a <???????????>
He hit that ball so hard it traveled over 100 meters in a straight line! It looked like a <???????????>
I thought T.J. was going to get an easy basket, until Fast came from nowhere to <???????????> him!
Jamal though he was a great player until he he got beaten
by some high school girls. They really
<???????????> him!
Nomar hit a homerun that landed somewhere in Kenmore Square. It was a real <???????????>
That pitch almost hit him in the head. That kind of <???????????> can be dangerous!
He's down on the court! He's not moving! Is he really hurt or was that just a <???????????>?
A good professional pitcher can throw the ball 160 kph. That's real <???????????>
That was such a nice reverse backward over-the-head stuff! They should <???????????> that move!
The ball almost got our of his glove but he managed to just barely <???????????> it.