noun
1 group of sports clubs that compete with each other
ADJECTIVE
▪ basketball , cricket , football , soccer , etc.
▪
They want to start a new football ~.
▪ sports ( esp. AmE )
▪
the standard for professional sports ~s in this country
▪ local , national
▪ summer ( esp. AmE ), winter ( esp. AmE )
▪ Premier ( in the UK )
▪ major , minor
▪
major ~ baseball
▪ big
▪
Hopefully he'll get called up to the big ~s soon.
▪ junior , youth
▪ Little League ( in the US )
▪
a baseball field with a Little League game going on
▪ professional
▪
the first women's professional athletic ~ in the US
▪ fantasy
▪
players for a team in a fantasy ~
VERB + LEAGUE
▪ create , form , set up , start
▪ enter , join
▪
The team joined the Northern League last year.
▪ dominate , lead
▪
The Yankees dominated the ~ in 1998.
▪ win
LEAGUE + NOUN
▪ champions , leaders
▪ championship ( esp. BrE ), cup ( BrE ), title
▪ club , side ( BrE ), team
▪ player
▪ game , match ( esp. BrE )
▪ final
▪ table ( BrE )
▪
The team slipped to the foot of the Northern League table.
▪
school ~ tables ( = showing how well schools are performing )
▪ record
▪
He set a ~ record for the longest touchdown run.
▪ baseball , cricket , football , etc.
PREPOSITION
▪ in a/the ~
▪
The team is now in the Premier League.
PHRASES
▪ at the bottom of the ~ , at the top of the ~
▪ come bottom of the ~ , come top of the ~
▪ a position in the ~
▪
They're hoping to improve their position in the ~.
2 level of quality, ability, etc.
ADJECTIVE
▪ big , super , top , world ( BrE )
▪
This move propelled him into the political big ~. ( BrE )
▪
This move propelled him into the political big ~s. ( AmE )
PHRASES
▪ in a different ~
▪
Today's technology is in a different ~ (= much better) .
▪ in a ~ of your own
▪
As a painter he is in a ~ of his own (= much better than others) .
▪ not in the same ~ (as … ) (= not as good as)
▪ out of sb's ~
▪
A house like that is way out of our ~ (= too expensive for us) .