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

to volley

1 4.2
To hit a ball before it touches the ground in sports
  • verb
  • /ˈvɑːli/
  • Specialized
: volear
  • We volleyed for a while.
  • volley the ball
  • serve and volley
  • volley it back

And Seb, you know, the golf YouTube runs in and at the last second volleys, it like smashes it into the roof of the net.

Examples

  • The finalists volleyed briefly, mesmerizing the squirrelly crowd before the momentous 147th.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • As students entered the gym, they immediately started practicing volleying a ball up and down on the racket.

    Academic text (1990)

  • They serve and volley for a while longer.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • You serve, I volley.

    The Bad Guys (2022)

  • The ball is volleyed back and forth between two five-man teams.

    Academic text (2003)

  • One student volleys the balloon to another student and then scoots under the net to the other side.

    Academic text (1997)

  • During the match, she expertly volleyed the ball over the net, scoring a point for her team.

  • He loves to volley the tennis ball back and forth with his friends on weekends.

  • The coach instructed the players to practice how to volley effectively during their drills.

Synonyms

to kick
vsto volley
∞ 1.0

Hit something with the foot, for example a ball in a sport

is executed before it touches the ground and can use hand or racket
to shoot
vsto volley
299 1.3

To try to score by sending a ball toward the goal

is performed before the ball hits the ground, not defined by aiming
to smash
vsto volley
50 3.3

To hit something with great force, often in sport

is made before ground contact and can be less forceful
to drive
vsto volley
36 3.5

To hit a ball hard to make it go far

is executed before ground contact and is not only about power
to hit the ball
vsto volley
34 1.0

To strike a ball with a bat or racket in a sport

is done only before the ball touches the ground
to stroke
vsto volley
9 3.5

To hit a ball with a smooth, controlled movement in sports

is struck before it hits the ground rather than as a smooth controlled shot
to loft
vsto volley
5 4.8

To hit or throw something high into the air

is done before the ball touches ground rather than focusing on height

Compounds

half volley
6.9

A tennis shot played just after the ball bounces

How Difficult

tweener
  • Jargon
9.4
passing shot
  • Specialized
1 4.6
lob
10 4.4
to volley
  • Specialized
1 4.2
to backhand
4 3.2
forehand
3.3

Surface Forms

volley infinitive
volleyed past
volleyed past participle
volleying present participle
volleys third person singular

Etymology

The verb volley also comes from French volée and Latin volare, 'to fly', so to volley a ball is to make it 'fly' from your racket or foot before it touches the ground.