squash tennis, game played on a four-walled court, similar in dimensions to the court on which squash racquets is played. The two games, however, differ in equipment, rules, and play. The squash tennis ball, the size of a lawn tennis ball, is larger and livelier than the squash racquets ball, and the squash tennis racket is the shape of a tennis racket but is smaller. The rules differ especially concerning the service; e.g., in squash tennis a ball may not carom off the side walls before hitting the front wall on the service, the service must bounce in front of the floor service line, volleying (i.e., returning the ball before it hits the floor) is forbidden in returning the service, and only the server may score a point. Squash tennis developed during the 1880s when some Americans began to play squash racquets with a modified tennis ball in order to speed up play.

squash racquets or squash, game played on a four-walled court, 16 ft (4.88 m) high by 181/2 ft (5.64 m) wide by 32 ft (9.75 m) long. The back wall, shorter than the front wall, usually measures 9 ft (2.74 m). A horizontal service line 61/2 ft (1.98 m) high is painted on the front wall, while a floor service line is marked off 10 ft (3.05 m) from, and parallel to, the back wall. The court is divided into two service zones by a line running midway between, and parallel to, the side walls. The inflated, black, hard rubber ball (1 3/4 in./3.18 cm in diameter) has a relatively "dead" bounce, and squash players must be fit and agile. Using a round-headed, strung racket that is no more than 27 in. (68.58 cm) long, the server hits the ball to the front wall above the service line (with caroms off the side walls permitted) without bouncing it on the floor, and directing it to the opposite service floor. Returning the ball before it hits the floor is permitted (even on service), and a point is scored when either player fails to return the ball before it bounces twice. All balls must strike the front wall above a tin "telltale" covering the bottom 17 in (43 cm) of the wall. Two serves are allowed a player per point. The small court usually makes doubles play inadvisable. In match play, 15 points win a game. Squash racquets, its name coming from the "squashy" ball first used, probably originated at England's Harrow School in the late 19th cent. from the older game of racquets. In the 20th cent. it became moderately popular in American colleges and universities. The U.S. Squash Racquets Association and the U.S. Women's Squash Racquets Association conduct annual national championships.

squash bug, name for a true bug, Anasa tristis, found throughout the United States and S Canada. It damages squash, pumpkin, and related plants by sucking the juices from leaves and stems. The adult is dark brown and measures about 2/3 in. (16 mm) long. The eggs are laid in the late spring and hatch in two weeks. The green larvae, or nymphs, soon turn brown or gray. Birds feed on both nymphs and adults, but the most effective natural enemy is the larva of a tachinid fly, which develops within the body of an adult or larval squash bug, feeding on and eventually killing the host. The squash bug is classified in the phylum Arthropoda, class Insecta, order Hemiptera, and family Coreidae.

squash: see gourd; pumpkin.

Singles racket game resembling squash rackets, played with an inflated ball the size of a tennis ball. Played in virtually the same court as squash rackets, squash tennis makes fewer demands on the legs in pursuing the ball but puts a greater premium on agility and quickness of foot and reflexes in turning and spinning.

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Singles or doubles game played in a four-walled court with a long-handled racket and a rubber ball. A descendant of rackets, it probably originated in the mid-19th century at England's Harrow School. The standard international game uses a relatively soft, slow ball; hardball squash, popular in the U.S., is played on a narrower court with a harder, faster ball. The object of squash is to bounce, or rebound, the ball off the front wall in such a way as to defeat an opponent's attempt to reach and return it.

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or leaf-footed bug

Any of more than 2,000 widely distributed insect species (family Coreidae), including many important plant pests. Most species are dull-coloured and more than 0.4 in. (10 mm) long. Many have enlarged, flattened extensions on the legs. The North American squash bug (Anasa tristis) is an important pest of squash, melon, and pumpkin (plants in the gourd family). It is basically yellow but is covered with black pits that make it look black. The larvae feed underground, and the piercing and sucking mouthparts of the adults enable them to attack the parts of plants that insecticides rarely penetrate.

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Any of various fruits of the genus Cucurbita in the gourd family, widely cultivated as vegetables and for livestock feed. The principal species are C. maxima and certain varieties of C. pepo. Summer squash is a quick-growing, small-fruited, nontrailing or bush type of C. pepo. Diverse in form, colour, and surface texture, the fruits do not store well and must be used soon after harvest (see zucchini). Winter varieties of squash, C. maxima, are long-vining, generally large-fruited, long-season types. Harvested fruits, in a wide range of sizes, shapes, and colours, can be stored many months if kept dry and well above freezing. The rinds are harder than those of summer squash and usually inedible. Examples include acorn squash and pumpkin. Native to the Americas, squash was widely cultivated by American Indians before Europeans arrived.

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