racket Hear it!

racket¹ Definition

racket (rak′it)

noun

  1. a noisy confusion; loud and confused talk or activity; uproar
  2. Archaic a period of lively, exciting social life or revelry
  3. ☆
    1. an obtaining of money illegally, as by bootlegging, fraud, or, esp., threats of violence
    2. Informal any dishonest scheme or practice
  4. ☆ Slang
    1. an easy, profitable source of livelihood
    2. any business, profession, or occupation

Etymology: prob. echoic

intransitive verb

  1. to make a racket; take part in a noisy activity
  2. Now Rare to lead a boisterous social life; revel
  3. to ramble or travel in a casual, reckless way, as in search of excitement: often with around

racket² Definition

racket (rak′it)

noun

  1. a light bat for tennis, badminton, etc., with a network of catgut, silk, nylon, etc., in an oval or round frame attached to a handle
  2. a snowshoe
  3. loosely the paddle used in table tennis
  4. the game of racquets

Etymology: MFr raquette, earlier rachette, palm of the hand < ML rasceta (manus), palm (of the hand) < Ar rāḥa(t), palm of the hand

racket Synonyms

racket

n.

  1. Disturbing noise

    uproar, clatter, din; see noise 2, uproar.

  2. Confusion accompanied by noise

    disturbance, uproar, squabble, scuffle, fracas, clash, row, wrangle, agitation, babel, pandemonium, turbulence, vociferation, clamor, outcry, hullabaloo, tumult, hubbub, commotion, blare, turmoil, stir, noisy fuss, clatter, charivari, babble, roar, shouting, rumpus, riot, squall, clangor, brawl, fight, pitched battle, free-for-all*, to-do*, great-to-do*, fuss*; see also confusion 2, disturbance 2. See syn. study at noise.

  3. *A means of extortion

    illegitimate business, illegal operation, confidence game, con game*, conspiracy*, plot*, intrigue*, underworld activity, systematic cheating, numbers pool, policy racket, protection*, swindling, fraud*, illegitimate undertaking, extortion*, embezzlement*, bootlegging, organized crime*, illicit scheme, graft*, trick*, dishonest game, lawlessness*, scam*, shakedown*, game*, push*, lay*, dodge*, the squeeze*; see also corruption 2, crime 2, theft.

  4. A web and frame used as a bat

    Types of rackets include: tennis racket, squash racket, racquetball racket, fivesbat, lacrosse net, badminton racket.

racket Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • uncover: Together with his boss, they visit all the West End galleries and uncover a neat little racket.
  • expose: Ramaya exposed a police racket in the prison: he admitted that, against prison rules, he had acquired a mobile phone.
  • avoid: Avoid racket and contact sports and any form of exercise that jars your joints, such as jogging and high-impact aerobics.
  • run: Local terrorist groups may run protection rackets to raise money for arms.

Adjective modifier

  • almighty: I am sure if, say, Glynn banged pots and pans for hours making an almighty racket he would be told to stop.
  • bloody: I turn the sound on... ...and bloody hell, what a bloody awful racket.
  • awful: What you may think is good music, may be an awful racket to your neighbor.
  • glorious: Without him, we would never have found each other and made the glorious racket that we did.
  • terrible: Clearly someone has skimped on the sound proofing too: that 1.6-litre engine makes the most terrible racket.
  • wooden: This was the birth of the graphite racket and when rackets became a lot lighter but maintained a small head like the wooden rackets.

Modifies a noun

  • sport: Married with three children, he enjoys cycling, racket sports & sailing.
  • abuse: He was frustrated and was given a conduct warning once for racket abuse.
  • ball: The ball is of a racket ball type composition.
  • skill: Players showed good understanding of the game, demonstrating good racket skills.

Noun used with modifier

  • extortion: Only Durham is likely to remain outside what effectively amounts to an extortion racket by the end of the year.
  • tennis: I can hurl tennis rackets at small moving objects with deadly accuracy.
  • badminton: When I came back down south I hung up my volleyball shoes and picked up my badminton racket again.
  • squash: He thought a squash racket would be ideal for the job.
  • smuggling: Four thousand artifacts were also stolen from regional museums, some by organized smuggling rackets.
  • prostitution: From drunken aggression and petty offenses, to the much more sinister organized drug and prostitution rackets.