Sports Glossaries
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ace

A serve that cannot be returned.

alley

An imaginary lane along a side wall.

around-the-wall shot

A shot that caroms from a side wall to the front wall and then to the opposite side wall.

avoidable hinder

A hinder that clearly impedes the continuation of a rally or prevents the opponent from making a clean winner; results in loss of serve or point.

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back-into-back-wall shot

A shot that is driven into the rear wall and travels on the fly to the front wall.

block

A type of hinder on which the player prevents the opponent from seeing or getting to the ball.

bottom board

The lowest area of the front wall.

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ceiling serve

A serve that hits the ceiling. If it hits the front wall first, it is a fault. If it hits the ceiling before hitting the front wall, it is side out.

ceiling shot

A shot that hits the ceiling before striking the front wall.

center court

The middle area of the court, just behind the short line.

court hinder

An unavoidable hinder caused by an object, such as a door latch.

cross-court pass

A shot hit from one side of the court that passes the opponent on the opposite side.

crotch

A junction of two playing surfaces, e. g. the front wall and a side wall.

crotch serve

A serve that hits the crotch of the front wall and floor, front wall and side wall, or front wall and ceiling.

crowding

Playing too close to the opponent; an avoidable hinder.

cut-throat

A non-standard version of racquetball with three players. The players take turns serving and the server plays against the other two players.

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defensive shot

A shot intended simply to continue a rally or to move the opponent out of the center court, rather than to end a rally.

donut

A game won by a score of 15-0.

doubles

A version of racquetball with two teams of two players each.

down-the-line shot

A shot hit from near a side wall that strikes the front wall and then bounces back along the same side wall.

drive

A hard-hit, straight shot.

drive service zone

The area of the service zone between a side wall and the three-foot line.

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fault

An illegal serve.

fishbowl

A court that has one or more glass walls.

five-foot line

A broken line 5 feet behind the short line and parallel to it. It marks the boundary of the safety area on return of serve. Officially known as the receiving line.

fly ball

A shot played directly on the rebound from the front wall, before it hits the floor.

foot fault

A fault on which the server's foot touches outside the service area.

front court

The front 15 feet of the court, between the front wall and the service line.

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garbage serve

A lobbed serve that comes to the opponent at approximately shoulder height.

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half-and-half

A doubles strategy in one player covers the right half of the court and the other covers the left half.

half-out

Loss of service by the first server on a doubles team; the first half of a side-out.

hand-out

Same as half-out.

hinder

Interference that deprives the opponent of a fair chance to make a shot. There are two types, avoidable and unavoidable.

hypotenuse shot

A shot that travels from a rear corner of the court diagonally to the opposite front corner.

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jam serve

A serve directly at the returner's body.

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kill

A low, hard shot that bounces twice before the opponent can return it.

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lob serve

A high serve that lands just short of the back wall.

long serve

A fault on which the serve hits the back wall before hitting the floor.

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match

A complete best two-out-of-three contest.

match point

A point which, if won by the serving player or team, will win the match.

mercy ball

Another name for a safety hinder.

mid-court

The area between the service line and the receiving line.

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offensive shot

A shot intended to end a rally and win a point or side out.

out serve

A fault that includes a serve that fails to touch the front wall, a touched serve, crotch serve, illegal hit, out-of-order serve, safety zone violation, or fake serve.

overhead shot

A shot hit from above the head.

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pass shot

A low shot out of the opponent's reach but short of the back wall.

pinch shot

A low shot into a corner that hits the side wall and then the front wall.

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rally

The alternating exchange of shots after the serve that ends either with a point or sideout.

receiver

The player who is to return serve.

receiving line

The five-foot line.

reverse pinch shot

A low shot into the corner opposite the side of the stroke; e.g a forehand shot, by a right-handed player, into the left corner.

roll out

A kill shot that hits the front wall so close to the floor that it rolls back into the court rather than bouncing.

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safety hinder

A hinder on which a player fails to make a shot in order to avoid hitting the opponent with racquet or ball.

safety zone

The 5-foot area bounded by the back of the short line and the dashed receiving line.

safety zone violation

A violation on which the receiver crosses the dashed receiving line before the ball bounces in front of the receiving line or crosses the receiving line on the fly. In doubles, it is a violation if the server's partner enters the safety zone before the serve has crossed the short line.

screen

A type of hinder on which the receiver's view of the shot is obstructed by the hitter. It is a fault on a serve; during a rally, it is replayed without penalty.

serve

The act of putting the ball in play to initiate a rally.

server

The player who puts the ball in play with a serve. Only the server can score a point.

service box

An 18-inch box at each end of the service area. In doubles play, the server's partner must remain in this area until the serve has crossed the short line.

service line

The line, 15 feet from the front wall, marking the front of the service zone.

service zone

A 5-by-20-foot area between the service line and the short line. The serve must be made from within this zone during the serve.

short serve

A serve that bounces before passing the short line. It is a fault.

short line

The back line of the service zone, 20 feet from the front wall, which divides the court into equal halves. A serve must rebound past this line to be legal.

side out

Loss of service by a player or doubles team.

skip ball

A low shot that hits the floor just before hitting the front wall.

splat

A shot hit hard, from near the side wall directly to the side wall.

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thong

The strap that attaches the butt of the racquet to the player's wrist.

three-foot line

A line, three feet from the side wall in the service box, that limits the direction of a straight drive serve. The server may drive serve between the body and the nearest side wall only if the player starts and remains outside of the 3-foot drive service zone, and the racquet does not break the plane of the zone while making contact with the ball.

three-wall serve

A fault on which the serve touches three walls before it hits the floor.

tiebreaker

The third game of a match, played to 11 points, when a different player or team wins each of the first two games.

twinkie

A game which ends with a score of 15-1.

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unavoidable hinder

A hinder caused by an unintentional act of a player or by a feature of the court. The point is replayed without penalty.

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wallpaper serve

A serve that travels close to a side wall.

wallpaper shot

A shot that travels close to a side wall.

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Z ball

A shot that touches the front wall and then each side wall before it hits the floor near the back wall.

Z serve

A shot that hits the front wall, a side wall, the floor, and finally the other side wall.

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