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la·crosse

(lə-krôs, -krŏs)

A game played on a rectangular field by two teams of ten players each, in which participants use a long-handled stick that has a webbed pouch on one end to try to propel a ball into the opposing team's goal.

[Canadian French la crosse, from French (jeu de) la crosse, (game of) the hooked stick, from Old French croce, crosse, crosier, of Germanic origin.]

(click for a larger image)

lacrosse

Beth Rhodey of Salisbury University (left) and Cat Serpe of Franklin & Marshall College (right) at the NCAA Division III 2009 Women's Lacrosse Championship

Salem, Virginia

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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