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dead-ball line

American

[ded-bawl] / ˈdɛdˌbɔl /

noun

Rugby.

the line at each end of the field parallel to and not over 25 yards (23 meters) behind the goal line.

dead-ball line British

noun

rugby a line not more than 22 metres behind the goal line at each end of the field beyond which the ball is out of play

"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 dead-ball line

First recorded in 1890–95

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