Meaning & use
the leisure centre
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Meanings
nouncountableBritish
A public building with a swimming pool and rooms for sports and exercise.
Grammar: Used with 'the' when both speaker and listener know which building is meant; otherwise use 'a' or the plural.
Patterns
- go to the leisure centre
- at the leisure centre
- a leisure centre with a pool
I take my son to the leisure centre every Saturday for his swimming lesson.
The new leisure centre has a gym, two pools, and a climbing wall.
She works as a lifeguard at the leisure centre near the station.
nouncountableBritish
A private sports and fitness club with similar facilities, often used in names.
Grammar: Often written with capital letters as part of a business name, e.g. 'Riverside Leisure Centre'.
Patterns
- join a leisure centre
- the local leisure centre
We joined a leisure centre so we could use the pool all year.
The council is closing the old leisure centre and building a bigger one.
Word forms
| plural | leisure centres |
|---|
Common combinations
- go to the leisure centre
- We go to the leisure centre after school on Fridays.
- a leisure centre with a pool
- They want a leisure centre with a pool and a sauna.
- the local leisure centre
- The local leisure centre runs cheap classes for older people.
- at the leisure centre
- I'll meet you at the leisure centre at six.
- join a leisure centre
- She joined a leisure centre to get fit.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sports centre
- Very close in meaning, but 'sports centre' often suggests courts and halls rather than a public pool.
- recreation center
- The usual American term for the same kind of public building.
- gym
- Only covers the fitness room, not the whole building with its pool and halls.
Word family
Commonly confused: the leisure centre or leisure center?
the leisure centre vs leisure center
In British English the building is spelled 'centre'; 'center' is the American spelling.
Practice
Which sentence uses the term correctly in British English?
Choose one answer.
A leisure centre is a building for swimming and sports, so 'swims at the leisure centre' fits. Option A confuses it with a library, and option C treats it as a garden object.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “the leisure centre”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.