1
: a sudden or violent twist or wrench of a joint with stretching or tearing of ligaments
2
: a sprained condition
sprained; spraining; sprains
: to injure by a sudden or severe twist
Examples of sprain in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Miami Herald, 30 Oct. 2025
Doncic is dealing with a finger sprain and a leg injury (contusion), which have sidelined him for the past three games.
—Max Dible, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2025
Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2025
After the series, ESPN reported James sprained his MCL in his left knee during the Game 5 loss.
—Rohan Nadkarni, NBC news, 9 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sprain
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Noun
But Bryce Young may not return from a high ankle sprain and backup Andy Dalton is iffy with a thumb injury — a bad QB situation to bring to Lambeau Field.
—Miami Herald, 30 Oct. 2025
Doncic is dealing with a finger sprain and a leg injury (contusion), which have sidelined him for the past three games.
—Max Dible, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2025
Verb
Ware, who was available Wednesday despite spraining his ankle in practice Tuesday, totaled seven points, four rebounds, one steal and one block in his limited minutes in the opener.
—Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2025
After the series, ESPN reported James sprained his MCL in his left knee during the Game 5 loss.
—Rohan Nadkarni, NBC news, 9 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sprain
Cite this Entry
“Sprain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sprain. Accessed 1 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sprain
1 of 2 noun1
: a sudden or severe twisting of a joint with stretching or tearing of ligaments
2
: a condition that results from a sprain and is usually marked by pain and swelling
sprain
2 of 2 verb
: to injure by a sudden or severe twist
Medical Definition
sprain
1 of 2 noun
: a sudden or violent twist or wrench of a joint causing the stretching or tearing of ligaments and often rupture of blood vessels with hemorrhage into the tissues
also
: the condition resulting from a sprain that is usually marked by swelling, inflammation, hemorrhage, and discoloration compare strain entry 3 sense b
sprain
2 of 2 transitive verb
: to weaken (a joint or ligament) by sudden and violent twisting or wrenching : stretch (ligaments) injuriously without dislocation of the joint
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