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Glite Dictionary
hoops

hoops

5 6.7
A team sport where players try to score by throwing a ball through a basket
  • noun
  • /hups/
  • Informal
translation icon : baloncesto
  • WHAT DO YOU SAY WE GO SHOOT SOME HOOPS?
  • a hoops game
  • shoot hoops
  • college hoops

Kobe Bryant had to shoot his first hoop at some point.

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Examples

  • We're going to go have dinner, probably go shoot some hoops in the backyard.

  • GET TOGETHER AND PLAY SOME HOOPS, MAN.

    Guess Who (2005)

  • I want to shoot hoops with her and challenge and challenge her.

    Rob Moore

  • There was a good crowd that came out the night of Oct. 23 to support and participate in Hoops Madness.

    Blog text (30)

  • All DraftKings Sports Book customers can also bet on NBA hoops with same game parlays.

  • YOU AND ME ARE GONNA SHOOT SOME HOOPS.

    The Hot Chick (2002)

  • Let's go shoot hoops at the local park after school.

  • He enjoys playing hoops with his friends every weekend.

  • After the game, we went out to shoot some hoops in the driveway.

Synonyms

basketball
vshoops
721 1.0

A team game played on a court where players score by throwing a ball through a hoop

is the informal casual name for the same sport
basketball game
vshoops
62 1.0

A match between two teams of five players to score by throwing a ball through a high hoop

is used to mean the sport as a whole rather than a match

Surface Forms

hoop singular
hoops plural

Morphology

hoops = hoop (semi-transparent) = hoop + s

Formed from 'hoop' + plural '-s', but the slang/metonymic meaning 'the game of basketball' requires cultural knowledge and is not a regular grammatical inference.

Etymology

The word hoops comes from the ordinary word hoop, meaning a round 'ring' or 'circle', like a hula hoop or a hoop earring. People say 'shooting hoops' because basketball is about throwing the ball through that round hoop, so hoops became a casual name for the game.