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tight end

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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WOTD – 6 March 2023

Etymology

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The retired American football tight end (sense 1.2) Rob Gronkowski who played in the National Football League for 11 seasons with the New England Patriots and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

From tight (“of a space, arrangement, etc.: narrow, such that it is difficult for something or someone to pass through it”) +‎ end (“position at the end of either the offensive or defensive line; player playing this position”), from the fact that the player takes up a position close to the tackle.[1][2]

Pronunciation

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Noun

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tight end (plural tight ends)

  1. (American football) [from 1960s]
    Synonym: (abbreviation) TE
    2. The position at the end of the offensive line whose primary jobs are to block and serve as a short receiver.
      Jones played tight end.
    4. A player (called an end) playing the position of tight end (sense 1.1).
      The tight end caught the pass.
      • 2024 February 11, Jane Coaston, “What MAGA Influencers Are Missing About Football”, in The New York Times‎[1], →ISSN:
        He has also written about some on the Right’s aversion to the N.F.L., particularly as some concoct convoluted conspiracy theories involving singer Taylor Swift and her boyfriend, the Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, while others denounce professional sports as a whole.
  2. (Canadian football, historical)
    2. The position at the end of the offensive line whose primary jobs were to block and serve as a short receiver; this position is no longer used.
    3. A player (called an end) playing the position of tight end (sense 2.1).

Coordinate terms

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Translations

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ “tight end, n.” under “tight, adj., adv., and n.2”, in OED Online Paid subscription required⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, December 2022.
  2. ^ “tight end, n.”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present, reproduced from Stuart Berg Flexner, editor in chief, Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2nd edition, New York, N.Y.: Random House, 1993, →ISBN.

Further reading

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