jai alai

American  

[hahy lahy, hahy uh-lahy, hahy uh-lahy] / ˈhaɪ ˌlaɪ, ˈhaɪ əˌlaɪ, ˌhaɪ əˈlaɪ /

noun

1. a game resembling handball, played on a three-walled court between two, four, or six players who are equipped with a long, curved wicker basket, or cesta, strapped to the wrist for catching and throwing a small, hard ball against the front wall.

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jai alai British  

/ ˌhaɪ əˈlaɪ, ˈhaɪ əˌlaɪ, ˈhaɪ ˈlaɪ /

noun

1. a version of pelota played by two or four players

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Etymology

Origin of jai alai

1905–10; < Spanish < Basque, equivalent to jai game + alai merry

Example Sentences

That explains the oversized glove, which for Anderson felt like a jai alai cesta compared with the modest mitts infielders use.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 9, 2025

"Like my dad always says: Everyone loves jai alai — some people just don’t know it yet," the younger Bueno said.

From Fox News • Mar. 28, 2022

But it was always strongest in Florida, where pari-mutuel betting on horse racing, greyhounds and jai alai has been legal since the 1930s, and especially Miami.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 28, 2022

She and her brother Manuel were born in Cuba before coming to Miami, where their father was a professional jai alai player.

From New York Times • Jul. 8, 2021

But in the Basque country you'd see all the men and boys in the village playing jai alai back of the church, using the high stone wall as their court.

From Getting to know Spain by Lambo, Don