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NBA

American  

  1. National Basketball Association.

  2. Also N.B.A. National Book Award.

  3. National Boxing Association.

NBA British  

abbreviation

  1. (in the US) National Basketball Association

  2. (the former) Net Book Agreement

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Every offseason, rosters are torn apart by the transfer portal and the NBA draft.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

Reigning NBA champions Thunder claimed a commanding 139-96 victory, helped by 28 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, as they improved their league-best record to 61-16.

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026

Approaching the end of the regular season, the Lakers looked at Thursday’s game against the defending NBA champions as a test, forward Jake LaRavia said.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

Doncic scored 600 points, becoming just the second player in NBA history to reach the 600-point mark in March, joining Michael Jordan.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026

Sometimes, when I need a minute, I like to pretend that Reggie Miller and Kevin Harlan, my favorite NBA commentators, give color commentary for my life.

From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.