jai alai

American

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

noun

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.

jai alai British

/ ˌhaɪ əˈlaɪ, ˈhaɪ əˌlaɪ, ˈhaɪ ˈlaɪ /

noun

a version of pelota played by two or four players

"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 jai alai

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

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.

The same decoupling happened to dog racing, harness racing, quarter-horse racing and jai alai a few years ago.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 2, 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

He hopes jai alai can make a comeback on simpler, if less lucrative, grounds.

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

Little boys are most interested in games with balls, like jai alai or football.

From Getting to know Spain by Lambo, Don

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