alley-oop

American  

[al-ee-oop] / ˈæl iˈup /

interjection

1. (used as a shout of encouragement, exhortation, or the like, especially when coordinating efforts to lift a heavy object.)

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noun

1. Basketball. a quick-score play in which a high, arching pass is made to a teammate close to the basket, who leaps to catch the ball and in midair drops or stuffs it through the basket.

Etymology

Origin of alley-oop

First recorded in 1915–20; from French allez-hop; allez, imperative of aller “to go” + hop, variant of houp, an interjection of expressive origin; cf. alley ¹ ( def. ), hoopla ( def. )

Explanation

An alley-oop is a collaborative play in basketball, when one player passes the ball and the other jumps, catches, and dunks it before landing back on the court. If your team wants to impress its fans, you should practice perfecting the alley-oop. The offensive move is fun to watch and always surprising, requiring excellent timing and teamwork. Alley-oop comes from the cry of a French circus acrobat, allez hop!. The term was first used in American sports to describe a high pass, catch, and touchdown by the 1950 San Francisco 49ers, but it was soon adopted by basketball players to name the brand new play.

Example Sentences

At one point, Wembanyama threw down a one-handed alley-oop while a defender was hanging on his other arm.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026

Midway through Friday’s game, James led a fastbreak and threw an inch-perfect alley-oop assist.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 26, 2026

To say there could be lots of alley-oop passes this season for St. Francis might be an understatement.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 10, 2025

And the kind of two-on-one fast break with Austin Reaves and LeBron James that usually would be an alley-oop became an alley-oops when Reaves threw the ball too high and James missed the layup.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2025

Nick had thrown the ball for the alley-oop but it was off and I had to reach for it.

From "Slam!" by Walter Dean Myers