golf

IPA/ɡɒlf/
KK[ɡˈɑlf]IPA/ɡɑːlf/

golf — noun

1. an outdoor sport where competitors use special long thin sticks (clubs) to strik

1.nounA2
Definition

an outdoor sport where competitors use special long thin sticks (clubs) to strike a small ball toward each of several holes set across a wide grassy field, aiming to complete all holes with the lowest number of strokes.

Example

Defne plays golf with her grandfather every Sunday at the local course.

collocation: play golf

The golf course near Kenji's house has eighteen holes and a beautiful lake.

Common collocations
  • play golf
  • golf course
  • golf club
  • golf ball
  • round of golf
  • game of golf
Synonyms
  • the links

    specifically refers to a type of coastal golf course, not the sport in general; used mostly in British English

  • the fairway

    refers to one part of a golf course rather than the whole sport

Common Mistakes

I need to buy a golf for the tournament.
I need to buy a set of golf clubs for the tournament.
'golf' is the name of the sport, not a word for the equipment.

golf — verb

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Golf refers to the full outdoor sport played across a large grassy course with 9 or 18 holes, using different clubs to hit the ball over long distances. Miniature golf (also called mini-golf or putt-putt) is a much smaller indoor or outdoor game played on artificial surfaces with obstacles such as windmills and tunnels — it shares the idea of putting a ball into a hole but lacks the distance, fairways, and natural terrain of real golf. Putting describes only the short, gentle strokes used on the smooth grass near the hole (the green); it is one skill within golf, not a separate sport. A driving range is a practice facility where golfers hit balls into an open field to work on their long shots — it is not a game or a course with holes. For example: 'We played a round of golf at the country club' versus 'The kids had fun at the miniature golf course.'

miniature golfputting ↗driving range

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • round of golf
  • game of golf

Prepositions

Etymology

Middle DutchScotsEnglish

The word 'golf' comes from the Scots language, where it was spelled 'golf' or 'gouf' in the 1400s. It may have come from the Middle Dutch word 'colf' or 'kolf', meaning 'club' or 'stick'. The modern sport was first developed and standardized in Scotland.