Meaning & use
backheel
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Meanings
nouncountablesport
In soccer, a pass or shot made by kicking the ball backward with the heel of the foot.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'a backheel' or 'two backheels'.
Patterns
- a backheel to someone
- score with a backheel
He scored with a clever backheel that surprised the goalkeeper.
The midfielder played a backheel to his teammate and ran forward.
verbtransitive or intransitivesport
To kick the ball backward using the heel of the foot, especially in soccer.
Grammar: Can take an object: 'backheel the ball'; or be used without one: 'he backheeled to his teammate'.
Patterns
- backheel the ball
- backheel to someone
She backheeled the ball into the net without looking.
Instead of passing normally, he backheeled it to a player behind him.
Word forms
| third person singular | backheels |
|---|---|
| past tense | backheeled |
| past participle | backheeled |
| -ing form | backheeling |
| plural | backheels |
Common combinations
- a cheeky backheel
- The crowd loved his cheeky backheel near the goal line.
- backheel a pass
- He backheeled a pass to the onrushing winger.
- score with a backheel
- She scored with a backheel from close range.
- attempt a backheel
- The defender attempted a backheel but lost possession.
Synonyms and how they differ
- heel pass
- Common in American English for the same move, especially when it is a pass rather than a shot.
- flick
- A flick is a quick, light touch with any part of the foot, not specifically the heel.
Word family
- backheeled adjective
- Describing a ball that has been kicked with the heel.
Commonly confused: backheel or backhand?
backheel vs backhand
Backhand is used in tennis and other racket sports for a stroke made across the body; backheel is a soccer term for a heel kick.
Practice
In soccer, what does it mean to backheel the ball?
Choose one answer.
A backheel is made with the heel and sends the ball backward. Option 0 describes a normal forward kick, and option 2 is a header, which is a different action.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “backheel”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.