• 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 ‘T’ / Tackle

Tackle

tac*kle

What Is The Definition Of Tackle In Football?

What Is A Tackle In American Football? Definition & Meaning

1. The term used in football to describe when a defensive player forces the offensive ball carrier to the ground in order to stop the play from continuing.

Examples Of How Tackle Is Used In Commentary

1. Taylor wraps up the running back behind the line and tackles him for a four yard loss.

SportsLingo Goes The Extra-Inch With The Meaning Of Tackle

Tackling is an essential and vital skill set when playing defense in football. Although it may seem easy to simply tackle an opponent, there is a correct technique to tackling a player in order to bring them down with ease.

To help bring down a player with a tackle, it is easier to stop their opponent by wrapping up their legs and focusing on the lower part of the body. A player can first try to grab the jersey of the ball carrier in order to slow them down, but then should try to wrap them up and focus on slowing down their legs so that they cannot break the tackle. Although a player can try to tackle the player by wrapping up their upper body, it is also much harder to bring them down since they can still push forward with their legs, and even drag the defender.

It is to note that it is illegal to grab the opponent’s face mask when tackling, as this is called a face mask and will result in a penalty. It is also illegal to grab the back-inside collar or shoulder pads of a player, also called a horse-collar tackle.

Sport 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.