Meaning & use
exhibition matches
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“exhibition matches” is a form of “exhibition match”.
Meaning
nounplural
Sports games played for entertainment or practice rather than for a competition or ranking.
Grammar: Plural noun; the singular is 'exhibition match'. Used with plural verbs: 'The exhibition matches were fun.'
Patterns
- play exhibition matches
- an exhibition match between someone and someone
- a series of exhibition matches
The tennis stars played exhibition matches in Tokyo to raise money for charity.
These exhibition matches do not count toward the players' official rankings.
Fans enjoyed the exhibition matches even though the results did not matter.
Word forms
| singular | exhibition match |
|---|
Common combinations
- play an exhibition match
- The retired champion agreed to play an exhibition match against the current title holder.
- a pre-season exhibition match
- The team lost its pre-season exhibition match but won the league opener.
- a charity exhibition match
- A charity exhibition match raised over a million dollars for the hospital.
- an exhibition game
- In American sports, people often say 'exhibition game' instead of 'exhibition match'.
Synonyms and how they differ
- friendly
- Common in British English for a non-competitive match, especially in soccer; 'exhibition match' is more general and used in many sports.
- friendly game
- Similar meaning, but 'friendly' alone is more idiomatic in British sports reporting.
Word family
- exhibition noun
- A public show of art, products, or skills.
- exhibition game noun
- American English term for the same kind of non-competitive sports event.
Commonly confused: exhibition matches or exhibition?
exhibition matches vs exhibition
An 'exhibition' is a public display (of art, etc.); 'exhibition match' is a sports game played for show.
Practice
The two teams will play three ___ in Asia next month.
Choose one answer.
The plural form 'exhibition matches' fits because the sentence says 'three'. 'Exhibition match' is singular and would need 'a' or 'one'. 'Exhibitions match' and 'exhibition matching' are not standard noun phrases.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “exhibition matches”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.