handball

[hand-bawl]

noun

a game, similar to squash, played by two or four persons who strike a small ball against a wall or walls with the hand.

the small, hard rubber ball used in this game.

Origin of handball

First recorded in 1400–50, handball is from the late Middle English word handballe. See hand, ball¹

Related formshand·ball·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for handball

Historical Examples of handball

She then set it down, and rang a handball two or three times sharply.
The Room in the Dragon Volant
J. Sheridan LeFanu
When I was in college I was very fond of handball and was a member of the handball team.
Power of Mental Imagery
Warren Hilton
The action around the handball court was beautiful to watch.
Anything You Can Do ...
Gordon Randall Garrett
For poetry is as much a part of convent school-life as is handball.
Why Joan?
Eleanor Mercein Kelly
Thus the game is really a combination of football and handball.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 5
Various

British Dictionary definitions for handball

handball

noun

a game in which two teams of seven players try to throw a ball into their opponent's goal

a game in which two or four people strike a ball against a wall or walls with the hand, usually gloved

the small hard rubber ball used in this game

soccer the offence committed when a player other than a goalkeeper in his own penalty area touches the ball with a hand

verb

Australian rules football to pass (the ball) with a blow of the fist

Derived Formshandballer, noun

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

Word Origin and History for handball

also hand-ball, 1630s as a type of ball; 1885 as a game, from hand (n.) + ball (n.1).