• Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
  • Home
  • Learn Baseball
    • Basic Baseball Overview
    • Baseball Terms
    • Baseball Trivia & Questions
  • Learn Basketball
    • Basic Basketball Overview
    • Basketball Terms
    • Basketball Trivia & Questions
  • Learn Football
    • Basic Football Overview
    • Football Terms
    • Football Trivia & Questions
  • Learn Ice Hockey
    • Basic Ice Hockey Overview
    • Ice Hockey Terms
  • Learn Soccer
    • Basic Soccer Overview
    • Soccer Terms
  • BLOG
    • Shopping Guides
    • The Locker
    • MLB
    • NBA
    • NFL
    • NCAAB
    • NCAAF
    • College Sports
    • Soccer
    • MMA & Boxing
    • THE SCRAPS
    • GIMME!
  • More Sports Lingo
    • Learn Bowling
      • Basic Bowling Overview
      • Bowling Terms
    • Learn Golf
      • Basic Golf Overview
      • Golf Terms
    • Learn Tennis
      • Tennis Overview
      • Tennis Terms
    • Winter Olympics
      • Curling
      • Figure Skating
      • Downhill & Cross Country Skiing
      • Snowboarding
      • Bobsled
    • Archery
    • Billiards
    • Boxing
    • Cricket
    • Cycling & Biking
    • Disc Golf
    • Dog Mushing
    • Fencing
    • Field Hockey
    • Gymnastics
    • Mixed Martial Arts (MMA)
    • Motorsports & Car Racing
    • Pickleball
    • Rodeo
    • Rowing
    • Rugby
    • Shooting Sports
    • Skateboarding
    • Sports Betting
    • Swimming
    • Table Tennis
    • Track & Field
    • Volleyball
    • Wrestling

A Place To Learn Sports. On And Off The Field.

You are here: Home / All The Lingo / Sports Terms That Begin With ‘L’ / Line Of Scrimmage

Line Of Scrimmage

line 0f scrim*mage

What Is The Definition Of Line Of Scrimmage In Football?

1. This is an imaginary line on the football field that separates the offensive and defensive teams before the start of each play.

What Is The Line Of Scrimmage In Football? Definition & Meaning

The line of scrimmage spans the width of the field and is placed at the spot where the previous play ended, and after any penalty yards have been assessed.

Each team cannot cross the line of scrimmage until after the current play has started, otherwise they will be called for an offsides penalty.

Examples Of How Line Of Scrimmage Is Used In Commentary

1. Rodgers walks towards the line of scrimmage and lines up behind center, analyzing the defense before the snap.

SportsLingo Goes The Extra-Inch With The Meaning Of Line Of Scrimmage

Historically, there has been some confusion as to where the line of scrimmage begins and ends. Many people refer to the neutral zone as the line of scrimmage, since this is the area that a defensive player may enter and exit before a play is snapped. However this is incorrect, as there are actually two lines of scrimmage on any given play. There is one line of scrimmage for the defense and one line of scrimmage for the offense, with each line being an end of the football. The space that is the length of the ball is known as the neutral zone. The defensive line of scrimmage, or the point of the ball that is facing away from the center, is most often the line of scrimmage that people tend to refer to.

To avoid any confusion when discussing the spot of the ball on a penalty, referees will say “previous spot of the ball” instead of line of scrimmage to avoid any confusion.

Sports The Term Is Used

1. Football

Join Our Community

From The Locker

Florence Griffith Joyner’s Incredible Track & Field Legacy

Florence Griffith Joyner’s Incredible Track & Field Legacy

Today marks 25 years since the untimely death of Florence Griffith Joyner. In her 38 years, she achieved some of the greatest accomplishments in … [Read More...]

Beards & Baseball: The House Of David Baseball Team’s Fascinating History

Beards & Baseball: The House Of David Baseball Team’s Fascinating History

Back in the early days of professional baseball, a clean-cut look was required for players. So when the House of David baseball team rolled into town, … [Read More...]

Unscripted with SportsLingo

Shaped By Sports | Tamara Donelson Is Unscripted

Shaped By Sport

How Tamara Donelson fell in love with mountain biking in spite of herself — and why she stepped back from the sport she loved to rediscover fun on her … [Read More...]

Jim Cavale, Unscripted

The Athlete’s Entrepreneur

Jim Cavale left baseball to pursue entrepreneurship — and he’s helped thousands of student-athletes in the process Jim Cavale is competitive by … [Read More...]

Browse Our Sports Dictionary For The Latest Sports Terms & Jargon

  • #
  • A
  • B
  • C
  • D
  • E
  • F
  • G
  • H
  • I
  • J
  • K
  • L
  • M
  • N
  • O
  • P
  • Q
  • R
  • S
  • T
  • U
  • V
  • W
  • X
  • Y
  • Z
Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | About Us | Contact Us
Copyright © 2025 · SportsLingo.com, a BrainBoost Media LLC. property.

Disclaimer: SportsLingo is an Amazon Associate and earns revenue from qualifying purchases.

In addition, SportsLingo may earn commissions from qualifying purchases from other affiliate networks.