handball

handball, court, indoor or outdoor game played by striking a ball against a wall or walls with the palm of the hand. Play may be for singles or doubles (four players) on a court with one, three, or four walls. The court is typically 20 ft (6.1 m) by 34 ft (10.4 m) with a short line, from behind which the ball is served, marked off 16 ft (4.9 m) from, and parallel to, the front wall, which is 16 ft high. Players hit the ball against the front wall before or after it has struck the floor once. The object is to keep the ball out of the opponent's reach but within the bounds of the court. In the three-wall game, the side walls are also in play, in the four-wall version the back wall also. In all versions, rallies are won when opponents cannot return the ball—made of hard black rubber, 17/8 in. (4.76 cm) in diameter—to the front wall on the fly. Points are scored only when the server wins a rally; the serve changes hand when the receiver wins. Twenty-one points wins a game. Special gloves are used to protect the hands. Although the U.S. Handball Association conducts national and regional championships, the sport, once very popular in YMCAs and public parks, has lost much of its constituency, except in some cities, to racquetball, a four-wall game, invented in the 1950s, that has similar rules but employs short-handled rackets and a fast-moving hollow rubber ball.

handball, team, or field handball, team court game. Despite its status as an Olympic sport, the game is virtually unknown in the United States. Originated in central Europe in the early 1900s as an outdoor game, it combines elements of soccer and basketball. The fast-paced play of 7- or 11-person teams has as its object the hurling of a cantaloupe-sized ball into a goal. Players may run or dribble three steps with the ball, but most advancement comes from passing. Fouls result in free throws and penalty throws.

Any of a variety games in which a small rubber ball is struck against a wall with the hand or fist. It can be played in a three- or four-walled court or against a single wall by two or four players (in singles or doubles games, respectively). The object is to make the ball rebound off the wall so that it cannot be returned by the opponent. The game runs to 21 points. Handball games were played in ancient Rome and later (as pelota) in Spain and France. Modern handball developed in Ireland, where it is still popular. It was played widely among late-19th-century Irish immigrants in New York City, whence it eventually spread around North America.

Learn more about handball with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Handball is the name of several different sports:

• Team handball an Olympic sport where two teams try to throw the ball into their opponents' goal
• Gaelic handball, a sport similar to squash where players hit the ball with a hand instead of a racquet
• American handball, a sport similar to squash where players hit the ball with a hand instead of a racquet - originates from Gaelic handball
• Eton Fives, a hand ball game played. in a smaller number of English public schools
• Four square, known as handball in Australia, a game played on two or more squares
• Chinese handball, a variant of American handball popular on the streets of New York City during the 1960s and 70s
• Australian handball, a variation of Chinese Handball with more rigidly defined rules, popular in schools.
• New Zealand Handball, a more tennis styled variation of Four square
• Reverse handball, a radical but growing variation of Australian, involving the use of external objects.
• Basque Pelota and Valencian pilota, handball games played in Spain
• Frisian handball (keatsen), a game played in Friesland in the northern Netherlands between two teams of three players.

Handball can also refer to:

• Handball (Australian rules football), a legal method of disposing of the ball and an alternative pass to a kick
• The illegal use of arms or hands while playing football (soccer)

Handballing may refer to the sexual act of fisting.