scrimmage
Americannoun
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a rough or vigorous struggle.
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Football.
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the action that takes place between the teams from the moment the ball is snapped until it is declared dead.
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a practice session or informal game, as that played between two units of the same team.
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verb (used with or without object)
noun
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a rough or disorderly struggle
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American football the clash of opposing linemen at every down
verb
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(intr) to engage in a scrimmage
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(tr) to put (the ball) into a scrimmage
Other Word Forms
- scrimmager noun
Etymology
Origin of scrimmage
1425–75; late Middle English, variant of scrimish, metathetic form of skirmish
Explanation
A scrimmage is a practice — not an official game — in American football, hockey, and in other team sports. You might think of football when you hear the word scrimmage, because the ball is placed on the "line of scrimmage" at the start of a play. A scrimmage is also a practice between two squads. You can also use scrimmage as a verb for other types of practicing. A basketball player might scrimmage by shooting one hundred free throws, for example. Originally, scrimmage was a variation on the word skirmish, and meant "a confused struggle between players."
Vocabulary lists containing scrimmage
Tangerine
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American Football, 3rd Quarter
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Crash
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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 Super Bowl marked Walker's third straight playoff game with 100-plus scrimmage yards, making him the only player in Seahawks history to accomplish that feat.
From Barron's • Feb. 9, 2026
He wants his quarterbacks to call their own play at the line of scrimmage based on how the defense is lined up.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 4, 2026
On Friday, it began on the Ducks’ first play from scrimmage, when defensive back D’Angelo Ponds picked off a screen pass and ran it back for a touchdown.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 10, 2026
Jacksonville looks like a playoff team when it can win at the line of scrimmage.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 27, 2025
At the end of the scrimmage, the older players were dismissed to write in journals, which they did sitting on cross ties that surrounded the bark floor beneath the jungle gym.
From "Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference" by Warren St. John
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
