Whether you’re a native speaker of American English or you’re just starting to pick it up, you’ve likely noticed how common it is to hear references to sports in conversations regardless of whether the conversation was casual, formal, or even business-related. Americans who reference sports in conversations usually do so through the use of idioms – a phrase or expression that has an alternative, culturally understood meaning. For example, a common sports idiom that almost all Americans have heard at one point in their life is “up to par”. In golf, the word “par” refers to the number of strokes that a golfer needs to stay below to win the game. When someone uses the term “up to par” in a conversation, they could be referring to a golf game, but it’s more likely they’re saying something is meeting their expectations.
Why References to Sports Are Common in American English
To understand why sports terms are so common in the American lexicon, it’s important to establish that to most Americans, sports are not just a fun, recreational hobby – they’re a cultural phenomenon. In 2024, Super Bowl LVIII had more than 123.4 Million viewers across all platforms creating the largest TV audience of all time. Sports viewership in the United States increases annually, and in most cases, regardless of the sport. It goes beyond love for the game on the TV or field; it’s an opportunity for families and friends to get together, eat good food, and reconnect. In fact, many people who attend sporting events or viewing parties may not intend to watch the game at all, but it takes minimal exposure to these events or the fans that frequent them to quickly understand commonly used sports references, as they’ve appeared in everyday language for centuries.
Examples of Sports Idioms Commonly Used in American English
Now that we have some understanding of how and why Americans are so partial to sports references, here are some of the more common examples you may hear in everyday conversation:
Baseball
Americans love baseball and it’s typically considered the oldest sport in post-colonial America. This means that, more than any other sport, baseball has had a longer opportunity to permeate the American lexicon.
Here are a few examples of commonly used baseball idioms:
- Hit a home run: Achieve great success.
- Out of left field: Something unexpected or surprising.
- On the ball: Being alert and effective.
- Throw a curveball: Introduce an unexpected challenge or twist.
- Step up to the plate: Take responsibility or action.
Football
In terms of popularity, you can’t deny the power that football (that is, American football) has over American culture. Football is featured in our media far beyond football season – you can see football in popular movies, books, TV shows, and podcasts, even if you don’t intentionally seek it out.
Beyond the national American identity, football also takes hold of our regional identity. Many Americans who wear attire that features a team logo may not even be huge football fans – they could just be representing their hometown or state. For example, many college students who go to the University of Texas may wear a Longhorns hat, because they want to represent their school, even if they blew off the last few home games that the Longhorns played. Here are a few common representations of football lingo in the American language:
- Touchdown: Major success or victory.
- Fumble: Make a mistake or lose control.
- Monday morning quarterback: Criticize decisions after the fact.
- Move the goalposts: Change rules or expectations to make success harder.
- Hail Mary: Desperate, last-ditch effort.
Basketball
Basketball is an exceptionally fast-paced and precision-based sport and, as a result, this is often reflected in the types of basketball idioms that Americans use regardless of if the person using them has ever seen a game. Here are a few common ones:
- Slam dunk: Guaranteed success or easy win.
- Full-court press: Apply intense pressure or effort.
- Dribble: Slow, controlled process.
- Buzzer-beater: Accomplish something at the last possible moment.
- Airball: Completely miss the target or fail.
Golf
On the opposite end of the spectrum, you have golf, a much slower and quieter sport than many of the ones listed above. Golf idioms were much slower to enter the American lexicon simply because traditionally a much smaller portion of the American population has had access to golf courses, as opposed to sports like baseball and basketball which carved their place in a variety of demographics regardless of race, religion, or region. With more affordable options for community golf courses, golf terms have slowly made their way into the American language as a whole. Here are a few examples of golf-related idioms:
- Tee off: Start something with energy or enthusiasm.
- In the rough: In a difficult or challenging situation.
- Hole in one: Perfect achievement on the first try.
- Mulligan: A failed attempt or do-over.
