noun

cricket

KRIH-kiht

noun

A small jumping insect related to grasshoppers, known for the chirping sound the males make by rubbing their wings together.

"The crickets chirped loudly all through the summer night."

A bat-and-ball team sport, popular across England and the Commonwealth, played on a large oval field with a wicket at each end.

"They stayed up late watching the cricket match between England and Australia."

"He learned to play cricket at school and still bowls for a local club."

Fair or sportsmanlike behaviour (from the phrase "not cricket").

"Reading her private messages just wasn't cricket."

How to Use Cricket

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishEither the chirping insect, or the bat-and-ball sport played mainly in Britain and the Commonwealth.

Common mistake

The phrase "crickets" (as in silence) refers to the eerie quiet you'd only notice insect noise in — it's a separate, informal usage from the sport or the bug itself.

Common pairings

play cricket a cricket match crickets chirping

Word Forms

cricketed past tense, crickets plural, crickets plural, crickets singular

Study it as flashcards or scroll it in Flow — saved to your collection.

Test yourself on “cricket” A quick quiz — meaning, synonyms & usage →

Fill the Gap

Can you complete this real example?

The _____ chirped loudly all through the summer night.

Etymology

The insect sense comes from Old French criquer, "to creak or click," imitating the sound crickets make. The sport's name likely comes from the same root, possibly via a Middle Dutch word for a stick or staff used in early bat-and-ball games.

Rhymes for cricket

ticket wicket picket thicket

See all rhymes for cricket →