billiards

[ bil-yerdz ]

noun

, (used with a singular verb)

1. any of several games played with hard balls of ivory or a similar material that are driven with a cue on a cloth-covered table enclosed by a raised rim of rubber, especially a game played with a cue ball and two object balls on a table without pockets. Compare pool ²( def 1 ).

billiards

/ ˈbɪljədz /

noun

1. any of various games in which long cues are used to drive balls now made of composition or plastic. It is played on a rectangular table covered with a smooth tight-fitting cloth and having raised cushioned edges
2. a version of this, played on a rectangular table having six pockets let into the corners and the two longer sides. Points are scored by striking one of three balls with the cue to contact the other two or one of the two Compare pool 2 snooker

Other Words From

• billiard·ist noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of billiards¹

First recorded in 1585–95; plural of billiard

Word History and Origins

Origin of billiards¹

C16: from Old French billard curved stick, from Old French bille log; see billet ²

Example Sentences

As a player, he reached the 1975 and 1977 world amateur billiards semi-finals and rose to ninth in the world rankings.

From BBC

Or visit the recreation center where you can play shuffleboard, duckpin bowling, ping pong, billiards and board games.

From New York Times

Customers will be able to digitally place cash bets at the arcades, where people play games like Skee-Ball, billiards and basketball shootouts.

From New York Times

Adding one simple rule to an idealized game of billiards leads to a wealth of intriguing mathematical questions, as well as applications in the physics of living organisms.

From Science Daily

This week, researchers from the University of Amsterdam, including two master students as first authors -- have published a paper in Physical Review Letters about the fascinating dynamics of billiards with memory.

From Science Daily