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Glite Dictionary
💥 A burst of shots 🎾 A quick shot 🎾 To hit in air ❓ To ask quickly
volley

volley

6 3.5
A shot hit before the ball touches the ground in tennis
  • noun
  • /ˈvɑːli/
  • Specialized
translation icon : volea
  • During the match, she executed a perfect volley to win the point before the ball hit the ground.
  • a backhand volley

Examples

  • Jenna Spadafora dives to continue a long volley against her Ohio opponents.

    Blog text (3)

  • He trained hard to improve his volley technique for the upcoming tennis tournament.

  • The only sound was the volley on the tennis court below.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • Then we improved Serena's ability to hit the volley to her left, improved her back end volley.

  • During this warmup, the teacher provided a challenge of "see how many consecutive volleys you can make without losing control."

    Academic text (1990)

  • Ted: I TELL YOU, THIS IS JUST LIKE WATCHING 2 STAR TENNIS PLAYERS AT THE NET, RETURNING VOLLEYS, BUT THESE KIDS ARE INCREDIBLE.

    Akeelah and the Bee (2006)

  • After the serve, the player delivered a powerful volley that left his opponent unable to respond.

Synonyms

shot
vsvolley
289 1.6

An attempt to score in a sport, for example throwing a heavy ball in shot put

is specific to a racket sport and done before the ball hits the ground
return
vsvolley
61 3.1

An action of hitting or running the ball back in sport

is done before the ball touches the ground rather than just sending it back
tennis shot
vsvolley
2.5

A hit of the tennis ball with a racket during play

is hit before the ball touches the ground
tennis stroke
vsvolley
1.9

To hit a tennis ball with a racket during a game

is played by hitting before the ball touches the ground

Antonyms

ground stroke
  • Jargon
1 3.5

A tennis hit made after the ball bounces once on the court

Compounds

half volley
6.9

A tennis shot played just after the ball bounces

Surface Forms

volley singular
volleys plural

Etymology

The word volley comes from the old French volée and the Latin volare, which mean 'to fly'. Think of a tennis ball 'flying' through the air and being hit before it lands, so a volley is a shot played while the ball is still in flight.