Meaning & use
charity stripe
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Meanings
nounsingularinformalsport
The free-throw line in basketball, from which players take unopposed shots after a foul.
Grammar: Usually singular and used with the: at the charity stripe.
Patterns
- at the charity stripe
- go to the charity stripe
The forward spent the final minute at the charity stripe.
Their star went to the charity stripe and sank both shots.
Bad fouling sent the other team to the charity stripe again and again.
nounsingularinformalfigurative
The chance to score free throws, used to describe a team's success or struggles on those shots.
Grammar: Used as a figure of speech: struggling at the charity stripe.
Patterns
- struggle at the charity stripe
- shine at the charity stripe
Poor shooting at the charity stripe cost them the game.
He is a reliable shooter at the charity stripe.
The coach worked on his team's performance at the charity stripe.
Common combinations
- at the charity stripe
- He was cool at the charity stripe.
- trip to the charity stripe
- Every foul meant a trip to the charity stripe.
- get to the charity stripe
- They kept getting to the charity stripe.
- struggle at the charity stripe
- The team struggled at the charity stripe.
- hit from the charity stripe
- She hit both shots from the charity stripe.
Synonyms and how they differ
- free-throw line
- Free-throw line is the standard, neutral term, while charity stripe is a playful nickname used in commentary.
- foul line
- Foul line is another plain term, and it is less colorful than charity stripe.
- the line
- The line is shorthand used by players and fans when the context is clear.
Word family
Commonly confused: charity stripe or charity shop?
charity stripe vs charity shop
A charity shop is a store that sells donated goods to raise money, and it is unrelated to basketball.
Practice
In basketball slang, a player at the 'charity stripe' is about to ___.
Choose one answer.
The charity stripe is the free-throw line, where unopposed shots are taken after a foul. The other options describe different plays.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “charity stripe”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.