New Word #45: The Olympic Games

ESL, vocabulary 3 Minutes

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

Watching the ongoing Olympic games is great for learning some new words. And suddenly I realize that there are so many sports related words–actually every sports have its own pile of terms that people not interested in it would not understand. Since I am really bad with sports, I can only select those words I encountered here and there. I tried to categorize and list in a certain order, but it’s no easy task.

To Describe People Who Love Sports

a good sport: To describe somebody as a good sport means a person who is not rude or angry about losing; someone who is kind or generous.

sportaholic: (slang) a sports enthusiast; one who loves to watch or play sport.

sportive: (slang) relating to, interested in, or good at sport.

lusorious: sportive; playful.

sportful: (slang) playful, related to sport.

sporter: a sportsman or a lavish spender on sports.

gamesome: playful and merry.

Combined Sports Event Of Olympics

biathlon: The biathlon is a winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting.

triathlon: The Olympic triathlon comprises a 1.5km swim, a 40km bike ride, and a 10km run.

pentathlon: an athletic event comprising five different events for each competitor. Modern Pentathlon comprises the five disciplines of fencing, swimming, show jumping, shooting and running.

heptathlon: A heptathlon is a track and field combined events contest made up of seven events.

decathlon: a 10-event athletic contest specifically a composite contest that consists of the 100-meter, 400-meter, and 1500-meter runs, the 110-meter high hurdles, the javelin and discus throws, shot put, pole vault, high jump, and long jump.

Judo, Taekwondo, Karate, Wrestling, Muay Thai, Kickboxing, Mixed Martial Arts

Mongolians are very interested in wrestling and other martial art events. Many really good Kung Fu movies would have Mongolian related scenes that involve wrestling and archery. Not being a sports enthusiast myself, I really don’t know the difference between these martial art events.

wrestling: the sport or activity of grappling with an opponent and trying to throw or hold them down on the ground, typically according to a code of rules. It is in the Tokyo Olympics.

judo: a sport of unarmed combat derived from jujitsu and intended to train the body and mind. It involves using holds and leverage to unbalance the opponent. It’s an Olympic event since 1964.

taekwondo: a modern Korean martial art similar to karate. It’s in the Olympics since 2000.

karate: an Asian system of unarmed combat using the hands and feet to deliver and block blows, widely practiced as a sport. It was formalized in Okinawa in the 17th century. This is a new event this year.

muay Thai: a Thai martial art and combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. It’s been recognized but probably not in Tokyo 2021.

kickboxing: Kickboxing is a group of stand-up combat sports based on kicking and punching, historically developed from karate mixed with boxing. It seems that it’s not in the Olympics yet.

mixed martial arts: a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorporating techniques from various combat sports and martial arts from around the world. Not yet in the Olympics.

New Events 2021 Tokyo

3×3 basketball: a variation of basketball played three a side on one basketball hoop.

skateboarding: an action sport originating in the United States that involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard.

sport climbing: a form of rock climbing that may rely on permanent anchors fixed to the rock for protection

surfing: the sport or pastime of riding a wave towards the shore while standing or lying on a surfboard.

karate: an Asian system of unarmed combat using the hands and feet to deliver and block blows, widely practiced as a sport. It was formalized in Okinawa in the 17th century.

baseball: a ball game played between two teams of nine on a field with a diamond-shaped circuit of four bases. It is played chiefly in the US, Canada, Latin America, and East Asia.

dodgeball: a game in which players in a circle try to hit opponents inside the circle, thus eliminating them, with an inflated ball. It is said it’s been recognized as an Olympic event since 2017, but I can’t find it in the list of events in Tokyo.

Other Sports Related Words

Subbuteo: a tabletop football game in which players simulate association football by flicking miniature players with their fingers.

telegame: The playing of games by two or more distant participants

cybergame: A game played on the Internet or in cyberspace.

tennikoit: A sport resembling tennis, played with a rubber ring instead of a ball.

prix: a prize in a horse-race or other sporting events.

partisanship: unfair judging (usually for political reasons)

peleton: the main field or group of cyclists in a race.

velodrome: a cycle-racing track, typically with steeply banked curves.

hat tournament: A tournament format for any team sport or game in which the teams are determined by randomly dividing up the participants into appropriately sized groups.

Published by haoyando

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32 thoughts on “New Word #45: The Olympic Games”

  1. This time I didn’t watch much of the Olympics but they are wonderful for allowing those who train well a chance to achieve a medal. That is what it is all about, to strive to do better, in sport. Your sporting words are fun! I didn’t know “lusorious” that’s new to me 😊. Interesting post. Thank you 💐🙋‍♂️

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    1. Thank you. By now, I’ve already forgotten what lusorious means. I googled it and only one place, thefreedictionary.com, says it means sportive. Thank you for liking it. My memory is bad and that’s why I want to compile them to share with others so that it may help improve the memory.

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        3. LOL. Let me tell you something really crazy. ขา, ค่า, ค้า, คา means leg, fee, trade, stuck respectively. And they sound so similar. Language is so crazy. I haven’t encounter the mid-tone Kaa yet, but I bet I will. I think I am going to compile all the baffling part together.

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        4. Most other Asian languages such as Mandarin, Cantonese, and Vietnamese are like that too. So I understand what you mean. What does get me, though, is that writing system. สา and ฃา both say “saaa” but the first one is a dipping tone. Also ย drives me crazy.

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    1. Yes, it is hard for women to attend family while also having a career. At the same time women always run into problems with society’s requirements. Just in this Olympic, there are women athletes who protest the bikini requirements for beach volleyball and there are women athletes who can’t bring their little baby to the Olympic village due to various restrictions. Many society’s prejudice and restrictions and narrow-mindedness hurt women one way or another.

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    1. Congratulations. For the advancement of Indian woman on many professions. The way to go. They are such an inspiration for all the women who want to make something out of themselves. Mongolians love wrestling, but I am no sports woman. LOL.

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  8. Great situation-relevant post! 😀 Triathlon sounds like a disaster 😅 Decathlon sounds more friendly 😉 I’d rather run and jump than swim 1 km 🥲 One would expect to choke and die in the pool.

    On that note, are you a good sport? I’m sure you’re not a sporter because you mentioned not being a sportholic. 🤪😉

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    2. LOL. I can never remember these thlon words and now you have made them easier for my memory. “Triathlon sounds like a disaster”. Hahaha, that’s so true. I’ve always wondered about that too. I mean doing one event is tiring enough. What will happen when you repeat the exhaustion several times. I will end up a dead fish in the pool. LOL. No, I am really bad with sports but I want to look like I am interested in sports just to look cool. It is such a facade. But we live with our flaws and make the best of them.

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