football

[foot-bawl] / ˈfʊtˌbɔl /

NOUN

a sport

Synonyms

STRONGEST

soccer

STRONG

rugby

WEAK

American football Association football Canadian football grid game gridiron pastime the pigskin sport

NOUN

the ball used in football

Synonyms

STRONG

moleskin oval peanut pigskin pineapple porker sphere watermelon

WEAK

inflated oval regulation football

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

I have periodically had the same “problem” with NFL, college football, and college basketball games.

From Slate • Jun. 10, 2026

At Ulm in the early 1990s, Rangnick was laying the groundwork for a tactical revolution in German football as one of the first managers to introduce zonal marking.

From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026

The football fan zone will be held in the Zocalo, where spectators will watch live-streamed games on a massive screen -- with President Claudia Sheinbaum planning to watch Thursday's inaugural match.

From Barron's • Jun. 10, 2026

Three decades after he left his bar job to return to football, the German now faces what could be the toughest test of his career - to bring the World Cup back to England.

From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026

When he drove the football team on the bus to the games, our girls often came along.

From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson