Badminton Terms: All you need to know

Badminton was first originated about 2000 years ago known as battledore and shuttlecock in Greece, India, and China. There is a long history of one of the newest additions of Olympic sports. The International Badminton Federation(IBF) was established with 9 members. It is a beautiful game that can be played both in lawn and indoor stadiums.



Badminton Terms



Badminton as a game has some of its own terms that you should be familiar with. Apart from international or national tournaments, even in a friendly badminton game, these terms are often used. Not only for playing, to spectate or enjoy a game of Badminton knowing the terms will help you a lot. Here I have presented some common but important terms that you should know to play or enjoy the beautiful game.

Alley: Alley is the 1.5 feet extended court for a doubles game. For singles, it’s no use. The back boundary line is called back alley.

Air Shot: It is actually a mis-shot when the racket fails to impact the shuttlecock but the shot is offered. It often occurs when a player takes off his eyes from the shot.

Backcourt: Badminton court is divided into 3 parts. Backcourt is the third portion of the court near the back boundary lines.


badminton court sizing

Baseline: The parallel to the net boundary line at each end of the court.

Backswing: The motion of taking the racquet backward to generate more power while the impact is termed as the backswing.

Base Position: The center of the court where the player tries to return after each shot in the singles game; also called “center position”.

Balk: It’s a foul according to the IBF rules that if a player either server or receiver do any deceptive movement that disturbs the opponent before or during the service. Similar deceptive movements- especially of the racket- are common and generally legal after the serve.

Bird: In badminton, there are certain regions where the shuttlecock is known as a bird.



Court: The area where the game is played called court.

Clear: When a shot is played deep into opponents half, it’s called clear shot.

Doubles: Badminton has 2 variations of playing style, firstly you can play 1v1 game secondly, you may play it teamwise and the team can be 2 persons. When The game is played a 2v2 game then its called doubles.

Doubles sideline: The side boundary of a court is different for the 1v1 game and 2v2 game. The 2v2 side boundary is known as a double sideline.

Drive: Gently lofted shot that horizontally flight over the net.

Drop: A shot that barely clears the net and falls very close to the net of the opponent’s court. Drops can be played from anywhere in the court and from any height.


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Flick: A skill of turning a soft shot into a faster passing shot by rotating wrist and forearm.

Forecourt: Between the net and front third of the court is named as forecourt.

Feather: In many regions, the shuttlecock is known as a feather.

Footwork: Foot movement plays one of the crucial roles in Badminton. The technique of moving feet correctly termed as footwork.

Game Point: The final point of the game.

Graphite: used in the construction of most modern badminton rackets.

Grip: The portion of the racket that players hold. Grips help to balance racquets.



Jumping Smash: Smash is known as a powerful stroke to pin down the shuttlecock over the net in the opponent’s half. And the action done while jumping is named as jumping smash. Players try to jump smash to generate more power and gain better height to get the point.

Kill: Kill is referred to as the fast, downward shot that cannot be returned.

Long Serve: A typical high serve that goes high and may land near the backline. This sort of service reduces the possibility of a smash return.

Midcourt: The middle part of the court between the net and the back boundary line on both sides of the net. The image can be more explanatory.

Net shot: When a shot is hit high from the forecourt or from close to the net and the shuttlecock drops sharply close to the opposite side of the net, it’s termed as “Net Shot.”


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Passing shot: The shot that passes the shuttlecock to the opposing player or team.

Push shot: Shot played with a gentle push to cross over the net.

Service court: Court is divided by a net in two parts. The area into which a service must be delivered is service court. Service court changes upon points.

Singles sideline: The side boundary of a singles court.

Short Serve: Opposite of a long serve. This shuttlecock barely clears the net and lands close to the service line.

Smash: Strongly-hit shot into the opponent’s court that sends the bird downwards very fast.

Wood shot: When a shot is occurred by an impact of the shuttlecock with the frame of the racket.



Conclusion



The above-mentioned terms will help you to understand the game of badminton and to enjoy the game. There are few other common terminologies that you will get accustomed to while playing the game. For more about badminton, you may visit our website pages.

Written by Zach Barnes

Zach Barnes is a sport enthusiast and a sports column writer. He is dedicated to continuously expanding his knowledge and sharing his expertise with others who have a passion for indoor games like foosball, badminton, air hockey etc. Zach Barnes aims to use his expertise to educate new players in improving skills and heighten excitement for these exciting games.

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