Meaning & use
umpire
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
An official who watches a sports game closely and makes sure the players follow the rules.
Grammar: Countable; plural is umpires. Used especially in baseball, cricket, and tennis.
Patterns
- an umpire
- the umpire
The umpire ruled that the ball was fair.
Players must respect the umpire's decision.
She trained to become a tennis umpire.
verbtransitive or intransitive
To act as an official in a sports game, making sure rules are followed.
Grammar: Can be used without an object (He umpired for years) or with one (umpire a game).
Patterns
- umpire a game
- umpire for a team
He umpired the championship game last night.
She has umpired at Wimbledon several times.
Word forms
| plural | umpires |
|---|---|
| third person singular | umpires |
| past tense | umpired |
| past participle | umpired |
| -ing form | umpiring |
Common combinations
- the umpire's decision
- The umpire's decision is final.
- chief umpire
- The chief umpire oversees all the other officials.
- umpire a match
- He was asked to umpire the final match.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
- ump noun
- Informal short form of umpire, common in baseball.
Commonly confused: umpire or referee?
umpire vs referee
A referee controls games like soccer and basketball, while an umpire works in baseball, cricket, and tennis. The sports don't overlap much.
Practice
In which sport would you most likely hear 'umpire'?
Choose one answer.
Baseball uses umpires, while soccer and basketball use referees. Swimming has officials but they are not called umpires.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “umpire”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.