forward pass

American  

noun

Football.

1. a pass in which the ball is thrown in the direction of advance toward the opponent's goal.

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forward pass British  

noun

1. Also called: throw-forward.  rugby an illegal pass towards the opponent's dead-ball line

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Etymology

Origin of forward pass

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

forward pass

So rattled were the French that Antoine Dupont threw a horrible forward pass from behind his own tryline, and his intercepted pass led to Kyle Steyn's second try.

From BBC ● Mar. 9, 2026

Which is how it quickly instituted some of the most notable shifts in the way the game is played since the adoption of the forward pass.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 26, 2026

Each forward pass strengthens the wave, while each backward pass weakens it.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 17, 2026

Already, Tipping is as allergic to subtlety as a forward pass right down the middle on the 50-yard line — or whatever football play would be a really obvious one.

From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2025

A forward pass over the goal line became a touch back.

From The Forward Pass in Football by Berry, Elmer