Meaning & use
laser tag
Last updated
Meaning
noununcountable
A team game in which players move around an arena and try to hit each other's sensors with harmless beams of light to score points.
Grammar: Used without an or the for the activity: we played laser tag, not we played a laser tag.
Patterns
- play laser tag
- a laser tag arena
We booked a laser tag session for my brother's twelfth birthday.
The mall has a laser tag arena with fog machines and glowing walls.
After an hour of laser tag, the whole team was out of breath.
Common combinations
- play laser tag
- The office team went out to play laser tag on Friday.
- laser tag arena
- The laser tag arena is next to the bowling alley.
- laser tag party
- She invited her whole class to a laser tag party.
- laser tag game
- Our laser tag game ended in a tie.
- laser tag vest
- Each player has to wear a laser tag vest with sensors.
Synonyms and how they differ
- paintball
- Paintball uses real paint pellets that leave marks and can sting, whereas laser tag uses only light and causes no marks.
- tag
- Plain tag is a chasing game where you touch someone, while laser tag borrows the name but is played with light-emitting equipment.
Word family
Commonly confused: laser tag or paintball?
laser tag vs paintball
Paintball players shoot small balls of paint, so they need protective masks. Laser tag players only fire light beams.
Practice
In laser tag, how do players score points?
Choose one answer.
Laser tag is scored by hitting sensors with harmless light beams. Paint is used in paintball, which is the tempting wrong choice.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “laser tag”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.