croquet

American  

[kroh-key, kroh-key, -kee] / kroʊˈkeɪ, ˈkroʊ keɪ, -ki /

noun

1. a game played by knocking wooden balls through metal wickets with mallets.

2. (in croquet) the act of driving away an opponent's ball by striking one's own when the two are in contact.

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verb (used with object)

croquets, present (3rd person singular) croqueted, past participle, past croqueting present participle

1. to drive away (a ball) by a croquet.

croquet British  

/ ˈkrəʊkeɪ, -kɪ /

noun

1. a game for two to four players who hit a wooden ball through iron hoops with mallets in order to hit a peg

2. the act of croqueting

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verb

1. to drive away (another player's ball) by hitting one's own ball when the two are in contact

Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

• croqueting
  present
• croqueted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• croquet
  simple
• croquets
  simple
• have croqueted
  perfect
• has croqueted
  perfect
• am croqueting
  progressive
• are croqueting
  progressive
• is croqueting
  progressive
• have been croqueting
  perfect progressive
• has been croqueting
  perfect progressive

Past

• croqueted
  simple
• had croqueted
  perfect
• was croqueting
  progressive
• were croqueting
  progressive
• had been croqueting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will croquet
  simple
• will have croqueted
  perfect
• will be croqueting
  progressive
• will have been croqueting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of croquet

1855–60; < French (dial.): hockey stick, literally, little hook; see crocket

Explanation

Croquet (rhymes with “okay”) is a lawn game played by whacking a wooden ball with a mallet. It was all the rage in Europe in the 1800s, but people still play it worldwide, often at summer parties. When you play croquet, you have a colored wooden ball and a matching mallet. Players take turns trying to hit their balls under a series of hoops or to knock someone else’s out of the way. When Alice is in Wonderland, the Queen of Hearts uses a flamingo as a mallet and a hedgehog for a ball, but that is not recommended. In Northern French dialect, croquet means "hockey stick," originally "shepherd's crook" in Old North French.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

croquet croquets croqueted croqueting

It’s croquet for people who like running on the tops of speeding trains.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 20, 2026

He was also photographed playing croquet with his staff on the lawn at Dorneywood, the official country home that came with the job of deputy prime minister.

From New York Times ● Nov. 21, 2024

It turned out the guests who rented the waterfront home weren’t just playing croquet, they were holding a tournament that ended shortly after sunset, but the celebration continued.

From Seattle Times ● Jul. 21, 2023

In the grounds there are cottages, a large greenhouse, walled garden, follies, fountain and croquet lawn.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2023

He plays croquet, not well, and sings sea chanteys.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

Greenspan calls the dough for croquets — little more than egg whites and nuts — a “misbehaver,” but mine was, strangely, not.

From Washington Post

We sent out free goat cheese croquets with fresh fig jam to every person who came in to eat.

From "The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora" by Pablo Cartaya

So the cook followed in Betty's track, and Mr. Gibson had to satisfy his healthy English appetite on badly made omelettes, rissoles, vol-au-vents, croquets, and timbales; never being exactly sure what he was eating.

From Wives and Daughters by Gaskell, Elizabeth Cleghorn

Potatoes, croquets of ib. ——, to fry ib. ——, to mash 139 ——, French way of cooking ib. ——, à-la-maitre d’hotel ib.

From The Lady's Own Cookery Book, and New Dinner-Table Directory; In Which will Be Found a Large Collection of Original Receipts. 3rd ed. by Bury, Charlotte Campbell, Lady

Place upon it, two inches from the edge, minced fowl or game, prepared as for croquets, and rolled up between two teaspoons in balls the size of a nutmeg.

From Dressed Game and Poultry à la Mode by Salis, Harriet A. de

England wing Abby Dow and her star-struck Spanish opposite number Claudia Perez exchanging a croqueted keyring, a hand-drawn portrait and shirts, external after their match last month was an irresistible example.

From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2025

Here the player’s ball proceeds a greater distance than the croqueted ball, but in somewhat the same direction.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 7 "Crocoite" to "Cuba" by Various

As he has no bridges to run he can never re-roquet, and hence after he has roqueted and croqueted all the other balls his tour terminates at the next blow.

From Croquet As played by the Newport Croquet Club by Anonymous

Not croqueting is sufficient evidence of declining; but if none are croqueted, and the ball is not moved to the side of any one, the player must declare which he means to decline.

From Croquet As played by the Newport Croquet Club by Anonymous

The lineal descendant of St. Peter croqueted his ball through the arch and rejoiced that he was on saving ground.

From The Story of Chautauqua by Hurlbut, Jesse Lyman

“Yankees are a deal the most tricky, everybody knows. There you go!” returned Fred, croqueting her ball far away.

From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott

Not croqueting the ball is evidence enough of having declined, as there could never be any advantage in declining the croquet and not the roquet, if it can properly be declined.

From Croquet As played by the Newport Croquet Club by Anonymous

No. The right to re-roquet must be acquired after croqueting or moving the playing ball.

From Croquet As played by the Newport Croquet Club by Anonymous

Any one of the roquets may be declined and made again after croqueting the other balls in their proper order.

From Croquet As played by the Newport Croquet Club by Anonymous

A ball moved under the foot in croqueting, but not flinching, is accidentally displaced.

From Croquet As played by the Newport Croquet Club by Anonymous