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Meaning & use

sport

noun, verb·Everyday

Last updated

UK/spɔːt/
US/spɔːrt/

Meanings

  1. nouncountable or uncountable

    A game or physical activity with rules, played for competition, exercise or enjoyment.

    Grammar: Countable for a particular activity (football is a sport); British English often uses it as uncountable: do you play sport?

    Patterns

    • play a sport
    • a sport for someone

    Swimming is my favorite sport.

    Our school offers a wide range of sports.

    He has never been interested in sport.

  2. nouncountableinformal

    A person who accepts losing or teasing in a cheerful, fair way, mostly in the phrase good sport.

    Grammar: Usually with an adjective: she was a good sport about it.

    Patterns

    • be a good sport

    Thanks for being a good sport about the joke.

    He lost the bet and paid up like a real sport.

  3. nouncountableinformalBritishAustralian

    A friendly way of addressing a man or boy, especially in Australian and British speech.

    Grammar: Used as a form of address: come on, sport.

    Cheers, sport, I owe you one.

    Don't worry about it, sport.

  4. verbtransitivehumorous

    To wear or show something in a way that people notice.

    Grammar: Takes an object: he sported a bright red tie.

    Patterns

    • sport something

    She sported a huge pair of sunglasses indoors.

    Half the team sported new haircuts for the final.

Word forms

pluralsports
third person singularsports
past tensesported
-ing formsporting

Common combinations

play a sport
Do you play a sport at college?
team sport
Rugby is a tough team sport.
contact sport
Boxing is a contact sport.
take up a sport
He took up a sport after his doctor's advice.
good sport
Dani was a good sport when we teased her.
spectator sport
Cricket is a popular spectator sport in India.

Synonyms and how they differ

game
Game can be any competitive activity, even a board game, while sport normally needs physical effort.
athletics
Athletics usually means track and field events, a narrower group than sport as a whole.
pastime
A pastime is any hobby, active or not, and does not imply competition the way sport does.

Word family

sporty adjective
fond of or good at sport
sporting adjective
relating to sport, or fair and generous
sportsman noun
a man who takes part in sport
sportsmanship noun
fair and gracious behavior in competition

Commonly confused: sport or spot?

sport vs spot

Sport has a r and means a physical activity; spot is a small mark or a place, or to notice something.

Practice

After losing the match, Tom shook hands and laughed. We all agreed he was a good ____.

Make it your own

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