badminton

IPA/ˈbædmɪntən/
KK[bˈædmˌɪntən]IPA/ˈbædmɪntən/

badminton — noun

1. an indoor racket activity, usually played as singles or doubles, where players s

1.nounA2
Definition

an indoor racket activity, usually played as singles or doubles, where players send a feathered projectile called the shuttlecock back and forth between the two halves of a rectangular court divided by a raised net.

Example

Wei and his classmates play badminton in the gym every Thursday after school.

play + badminton + location

Ana bought a new racket and a tube of shuttlecocks for the weekend badminton tournament.

collocation: badminton racket / shuttlecock / tournament

Common collocations
  • play badminton
  • badminton court
  • badminton racket
  • badminton match
  • badminton tournament
  • badminton doubles
  • badminton singles
  • shuttlecock
  • indoor badminton

Grammar Patterns

play + badminton

Usage Note

Badminton is an uncountable noun and is typically used with 'play' (play badminton). The scoring uses the rally-point system, and matches are usually best of three games.

Common Mistakes

I played a badminton yesterday.
I played badminton yesterday.
Badminton is uncountable; do not use 'a' before it.
He served the ball.
He served the shuttlecock.
In badminton the object hit is a shuttlecock, not a ball.

Word family

  • badminton player
    nounA2

Common collocations

Nouns

  • badminton court
  • badminton racket
  • badminton net
  • shuttlecock
  • badminton player
  • badminton tournament
  • badminton match
  • badminton club
  • badminton championship

Phrases

  • play badminton
  • a game of badminton
  • badminton doubles match
  • singles badminton match

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

The sport is named after Badminton House in Gloucestershire, England, where the game was played by the Duke of Beaufort's family in the mid-19th century. The house name itself comes from Old English 'Badimyncgtun', meaning 'estate of a man named Bad(d)a'.