zone defense

noun

: a system of defense (as in basketball or football) in which each player guards an assigned area rather than a specified opponent

Examples of zone defense in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
That leads into perhaps the biggest question of the Western Conference Finals: whether or not the Thunder can break a zone defense. Nick Crain, Forbes.com, 20 May 2025 To seal the deal, Minnesota will try to get out in transition and nullify the Warriors’ zone defense. Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 14 May 2025 In Game 4 of the second-round playoff series, Adelman used a zone defense for about twice as many possessions as Denver had in any previous game this season. Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 13 May 2025 But the Rockets had been experimenting with zone defense, too. Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 1 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for zone defense

Word History

First Known Use

1927, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of zone defense was in 1927

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Cite this Entry

“Zone defense.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/zone%20defense. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.

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