play-by-play

English

Etymology

From play +‎ by +‎ play.

Adjective

play-by-play (not comparable)

1. (US, sports) Describing a sports commentary in which a commentator describes every action in some detail as it occurs, often assisted by a second commentator who provides background information and other comments.

   Synonym: (cricket) ball-by-ball

Noun

play-by-play (plural play-by-plays)

1. (US, sports) A detailed description or analysis of sporting events as they occur in succession, one play at a time.
   • 2004, Dean Oliver, Basketball on Paper: Rules and Tools for Performance Analysis:

     So I collected a cross section of play-by-plays, definitely not as many as I'd like to collect but enough to feel pretty comfortable with what I was seeing.