Calcutta Cup

British

noun

rugby Union a trophy competed for annually by England and Scotland since 1879

"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

Etymology

Origin of Calcutta Cup

after the _Calcutta Rugby and Cricket Club, who donated the trophy to the Rugby Football Union in 1878

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.

On the road to this point, he has lost a few warriors - Jamie Ritchie and Jamie Dobie after the Calcutta Cup and now Scott Cummings and Gregor Brown, too.

From BBC • Mar. 10, 2026

"It is always tough backing up an emotional performance like a Calcutta Cup game," said Tuipulotu, with Scotland yet to finish higher than third in the Six Nations era.

From Barron's • Feb. 20, 2026

It is almost a rite of passage for a successful England team to first suffer a chastening Calcutta Cup loss at Murrayfield.

From Barron's • Feb. 15, 2026

Scotland travel to Cardiff as hot favourites, but without three players from the Calcutta Cup.

From BBC • Feb. 14, 2026

Took nine to four on Cleopatra for the Calcutta Cup.

From The Mystery of Cloomber by Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir

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