snooker

Everyday

1. A game played on a large table covered in green cloth, where players hit coloured balls into pockets with a long stick called a cue. tree →
2. In that game, a position where a ball blocks the shot you need to play. tree →
3. (informal, UK, Australia) To snooker someone is to trick them or put them in a position where they cannot do anything. tree →
4. (informal) «Snookered» means stuck, beaten or trapped. tree →

In the lessons

Snooker is a popular sport on television in the UK, Ireland and Australia. Its scoring uses points: red balls are worth 1 and the coloured balls 2 to 7, which makes simple adding problems. In everyday talk «I'm snookered» means «I'm stuck and there's no way out». Phrases: «play snooker», «snooker table», «snooker cue», «be snookered».

Examples

• My uncle plays snooker at the club on Fridays. tree →
• The snooker table has six pockets. tree →
• She potted a red ball and then the black in the game of snooker. tree →
• A red ball is worth one point and the black is worth seven. tree →
• He left his opponent in a snooker behind the blue ball. tree →
• I've spent all my pocket money, so I'm snookered for the school trip. tree →
• They snookered us by changing the rules at the last minute. tree →
• We watched the snooker final on TV. tree →

Note

As a game it is uncountable: «play snooker», not «play a snooker». «Snooker» is different from «pool» and «billiards», though all use a cue and balls. In maths problems, add the values of balls potted: red = 1, yellow = 2, green = 3, brown = 4, blue = 5, pink = 6, black = 7. «Snookered» is informal.