tennis glossary

Ace – good serve that is unreturned and not touched by a player.

Ad court – side, on which the second point of each game begins, also called the left court or the backhand court.

Alley – area on each side of the singles court that enlarges the surface area for doubles play, also known as the tramlines.

Approach shot – used from inside the baseline to enable a player to attack the net.

Australian formation – serving formation in doubles wherein the server and server's partner are initially positioned on the same side of the court.

Australian grip – midway between the Eastern and continental to facilitate serve-volley play on grass.

Backspin – hitting the underside of the ball.

Baseline – line, which demarcates the legal length of the court.

Block volley – volley produced by holding the racket firmly in the path of the oncoming ball and ‘blocking' it back with almost no motion.

Centre line – Refers to both the line dividing the service boxes, a ‘server' will often hit ‘down the centreline'.

Changeover – time after every odd game when players change ends of the court. They have 90 seconds to make the changeover.

Chip shot – soft dipping shot with backspin that just clears the net. Often employed to return serve.

Chop shot – stroke with heavy backspin, hit with a chopping motion.

Continental grip – the same for forehand and backhand, so called because it was developed on the ‘continent' of Europe .

Crosscourt shot -- ball hit diagonally across the court, as opposed to one hit straight down the line.

Defensive lob – A high, deep shot, which allows the player on the defence time to recover court position and forces the offensive player away from the net.

Deuce court – side, on which the first point of each game begins, also called the right court or the forehand court.

Dink shot – soft dipping shot that just clears the net; often used in doubles, especially on return of serve.

Double-fault – Failure to hit either of two serves in play.

Drive volley or swing volley – Hitting the ball in the air with a longer swing than the normal short volley movement.

Drop shot – A delicate shot that barely clears the net and falls short in the opponent's court.

Drop volley – Same as the drop shot, but hit off a volley, usually from a position close to the net.

Eastern grip – strong grip used for groundstrokes, so called because it was developed in the eastern United States that employs separate hand positions for forehand and backhand.

Fast courts – court surfaces, such as wood and grass, that allow the ball to bounce faster and lower than others.

Flat serve – hit with little or no spin, usually it is hit with great speed and power.

Follow-through – the finishing motion of the swing after the ball has been hit.

Groundstroke – hitting the ball after it has bounced, usually from between he area of the service line and baseline.

Gut – responsive string made from animal intestines used to string rackets.

Half-court – the area of the court midway between the baseline and net, also called mid-court.

Half volley – playing the ball just after it bounces with a very low, short stroke.

Hitting on the rise – playing the ball before it has reached the peak of its bounce. Also known as "taking the ball early."

Kill – to "put the ball away" and end the point.

Lob – a high-arcing shot, usually hit from behind the baseline, using topspin or under-spin to regain position.

Lob volley – hitting a lob off the volley before the ball bounces. Often used when both players are at the net.

Mid-court – the area around the service lines, halfway between the net and the baseline. Also known as “No man's land.”

Moon ball – A very high lob mixed into a baseline exchange, primarily used to change the tempo.

Net rusher – player who aggressively moves forward to a position at the net.

Offensive lob – played from an intermediate or offensive position, usually hit with a lower trajectory than the defensive lob, and intended to win the point. Often hit with topspin.

Open stance – any hitting stance where the back foot is closer to the path of the ball than the front foot.

Overhead smash – stroke played above the head with a service-type action, usually from near the net and in response to a lob.

Passing shot – groundstroke that passes a player at the net on either side.

Punch volley – marked by a very short ‘punching' movement of the racket.

Put away volley – hit beyond the opponent's reach.

Rally – Play exchange between two or more players.

Ready position – shot preparation. Weight slightly forward, knees slightly bent, racket up and in front of the body.

Semi-Western grip – midway between the Western and Eastern grips.

Serve-and-volley – style of play that involves rushing toward the net immediately after the serve, in order to make a volley off the return.

Service box – area on the other side of the net in which a serve must land in order to be legal.

Service break – one player wins a game while the other player is serving.

Service line – line in mid-court that marks the boundaries of the service boxes.

"T" – mid-court area formed by the junction of the centre service line and the service lines. You may hear “a player serves down the T for an ace.”

Tennis elbow – pain caused by too much play, improper technique, racquet tension or even racquet grip size.

Tension – degree of tautness in the strings of a racket.

Topspin – hitting over the top of the ball for forward rotation in flight

Volley – playing the ball in the air before it bounces.

Western grip – developed on hard courts in California , allowing a player to hit high-bouncing balls with power and topspin

Go Back