racquetball

The word 'racquetball' is a modern compound, formed in the mid-20th century to name a new indoor sport. Its first element, 'racquet', has a long journey from the Arabic word for the palm of the hand, reflecting the original use of the hand in games like tennis, through Italian and French where it came to mean the strung bat. The second element, 'ball', is a fundamental Germanic term for a round object used in play. The compound transparently describes the core equipment of the game: a ball struck by a racquet, following the naming pattern of similar sports like tennis and handball, and distinguishes it from its predecessor, the game of paddleball, by specifying the type of implement used.

Structure: racquet + ball - racquet: From Old French raquette, likely from Arabic rāḥa (palm of the hand), via Italian racchetta. In this word, it denotes the implement used to hit the ball. - ball: From Old English beall or Old Norse bǫllr, meaning a spherical object. In this word, it denotes the object that is hit and played with.