Standard Lemma guide

sportsmanship

noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • CMU ARPABET: S P AO1 R T S M AH0 N SH IH2 P Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The good attitude/behaviour displayed by players of a game; fairness, determination, magnanimity, courtesy towards opponents, and winning or losing gracefully.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The behaviour exhibited in playing sports, either good or bad.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

Examples

  • James showed good sportsmanship in consoling Shankar after his wicket fell.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

fairness in following the rules of the game

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: fairness, equity

History

Etymology

From sports + -manship.

Across languages

Translations

24 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: رُوح رِيَاضِيَّة (rūḥ riyāḍiyya) — (good) behavior in sports
  • Bulgarian: спортсменство (sportsmenstvo) — (good) behavior in sports
  • Catalan: esportivitat — (good) behavior in sports
  • Chinese Mandarin: 體育精神 /体育精神 (tǐyù jīngshén) — (good) behavior in sports
  • Finnish: urheiluhenki — (good) behavior in sports
  • Finnish: urheilijamaisuus — (good) behavior in sports
  • French: sportivité — (good) behavior in sports
  • Galician: deportividade — (good) behavior in sports
  • German: Sportsgeist — (good) behavior in sports
  • German: Sportlichkeit — (good) behavior in sports
  • Greek: αθλητικό πνεύμα (athlitikó pnévma) — (good) behavior in sports
  • Indonesian: sportivitas — (good) behavior in sports
  • Indonesian: kesportifan — (good) behavior in sports
  • Italian: sportività — (good) behavior in sports
  • Japanese: スポーツマンシップ (supōtsumanshippu) — (good) behavior in sports
  • Korean: 스포츠맨 정신 (seupocheumaen jeongsin) — (good) behavior in sports
  • Korean: 정정당당한 태도 (jeongjeongdangdanghan taedo) — (good) behavior in sports
  • Macedonian: спо́ртски дух (spórtski duh) — (good) behavior in sports
  • Polish: sportowe zachowanie — (good) behavior in sports
  • Portuguese: espírito esportivo — (good) behavior in sports
  • Spanish: deportividad — (good) behavior in sports
  • Spanish: espíritu deportivo — (good) behavior in sports
  • Welsh: sbortsmonaeth — (good) behavior in sports
  • Welsh: chwarae teg — (good) behavior in sports
Real reading context

sportsmanship in complete knowledge articles