scrimmage
UK /ˈskɹɪmɪd͡ʒ/ · US /ˈskɹɪməd͡ʒ/ noun, verb
Forms scrimmages scrimmaging scrimmaged
- noun A rough fight. “get caught up in a scrimmage”
- noun (US, athletics, soccer) In some team sports, especially soccer, a practice game which does not count on a team's record.
- noun (athletics, American football) In American football or Canadian football, a play that begins with a snap from the center while opposing teams are on either side of a line of scrimmage.
- verb To have, or be involved in, a scrimmage. “We scrimmaged a few times and then settled into boring drills.”
Synonyms
Etymology
A corruption of skirmish.
Webster’s 1913
- noun Formerly, a skirmish; now, a general row or confused fight or struggle.
- noun The struggle in the rush lines after the ball is put in play.
Etymology [A corruption of skirmish. "Sore scrymmishe." Ld. Berners.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “scrimmage”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details