Tennis Terminology

Tennis is an extremely popular sport world wide. Like its cousins golf and cricket, there is a long and storied history behind tennis. Played by kings and lords, tennis has developed a lot of terms over time. All of these terms, including the scoring method, deter many people from taking up or following tennis. This article aims to lower the intimidation factor a bit by teaching you some basic tennis terminology.

Scoring in tennis

What many people find confusing about tennis is the weird scoring system. You can blame the weird scoring system on the French, who developed much of the terminology. Originally, tennis matches were scored 0, 15, 30, 45, 60. In other words, for each point you win, you move up in points until you win a game. Winning a certain amount of games (usually six) wins a set, and winning a certain amount of sets (usually best of three, five, or seven) wins the match. Now, tennis scoring consists of love, 15, 30, 40, Game. "Love," comes from the French word, "l'oeuf," which means, "egg," another word for zero. Forty was used instead of 45 because it was easier to say. When both players are tied at 40, it is called "deuce," which means "two." This name developed because it requires winning two consecutive points to win the game once both players are tied at forty. An "advantage" occurs when one player is up by one point when the players are tied at deuce.

Other tennis terms

Beside the scoring, there are other tennis terms you should know. A "volley" is when a player hits the ball before it bounces, and a "serve and volley" occurs when a player first serves, then goes to the net to volley the return shot. A "let" occurs when, after a serve, the ball strikes the net but bounces over the net and lands in the other player's service square. When this happens the server gets a redo.

Tennis is overwhelming for many first time players and viewers because of the weird scoring system and abundance of terms. This article covered some basic terminology for the beginning tennis fan.