racket1
[rak-it]
- a loud noise or clamor, especially of a disturbing or confusing kind; din; uproar: The traffic made a terrible racket in the street below.
- social excitement, gaiety, or dissipation.
- an organized illegal activity, such as bootlegging or the extortion of money from legitimate business people by threat or violence.
- a dishonest scheme, trick, business, activity, etc.: the latest weight-reducing racket.
- Usually the rackets. organized illegal activities: Some say that the revenue from legalized gambling supports the rackets.
- Slang.
- an occupation, livelihood, or business.
- an easy or profitable source of livelihood.
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- to make a racket or noise.
- to take part in social gaiety or dissipation.
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Origin of racket1
Synonyms
Antonyms
1, 2. tranquillity.
racket2
[rak-it]
- a light bat having a netting of catgut or nylon stretched in a more or less oval frame and used for striking the ball in tennis, the shuttlecock in badminton, etc.
- the short-handled paddle used to strike the ball in table tennis.
- rackets, (used with a singular verb) racquet(def 1).
- a snowshoe made in the form of a tennis racket.
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Also rac·quet (for defs 1, 2, 4).
Origin of racket2
1490–1500; < Middle French raquette, rachette, perhaps < Arabic rāḥet, variant of rāḥah palm of the hand
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
fraudgraftconspiracytheftschemeextortionswindleshuffleagitationblarewranglesquabblebattlefree-for-allrowdisturbanceriotbabelhubbubclamorExamples from the Web for rackets
Contemporary Examples
As of 2005, Safin estimated he had broken more than 300 rackets in emotional outbursts.
In the 1940s, the Jewish rackets were waning in influence as the Italian Mafia expanded.
Historical Examples
As long as I ignore their rackets they accept me in their midst, talk freely with me around.
This One ProblemM. C. Pease
Towards the end of the game Cresswell and Cartwright walked up with their rackets.
Follow My leaderTalbot Baines Reed
The wings are of a purple-brown, as is the tail; but the rackets are black, shot with green.
The Western WorldW.H.G. Kingston
We had to take our rackets off, for it was so rocky and uneven that we could not use them.
Ben ComeeM. J. (Michael Joseph) Canavan
I lit a pipe and waited for Henry to finish his game of rackets.
Happy DaysAlan Alexander Milne
rackets
- (functioning as singular)
- a game similar to squash played in a large four-walled court by two or four players using rackets and a small hard ball
- (as modifier)a rackets court; a rackets championship
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racket1
- a noisy disturbance or loud commotion; clamour; din
- gay or excited revelry, dissipation, etc
- an illegal enterprise carried on for profit, such as extortion, fraud, prostitution, drug peddling, etc
- slang a business or occupationwhat's your racket?
- music
- a medieval woodwind instrument of deep bass pitch
- a reed stop on an organ of deep bass pitch
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- (intr often foll by about) rare to go about gaily or noisily, in search of pleasure, excitement, etc
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Word Origin
C16: probably of imitative origin; compare rattle 1
racket2
racquet
- a bat consisting of an open network of nylon or other strings stretched in an oval frame with a handle, used to strike the ball in tennis, badminton, etc
- a snowshoe shaped like a tennis racket
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- (tr) to strike (a ball, shuttlecock, etc) with a racket
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See also rackets
Word Origin
C16: from French raquette, from Arabic rāhat palm of the hand
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 rackets
racket
racket
n.2
"handled paddle or netted bat used in tennis, etc.;" see racquet.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper