Sports Talk By ESPN Kids Writer

Sports have a language of their own. Sports announcers, writers, fans, athletes and coaches can have entire conversations that some people aren't able to understand. Here are some of our favorite sports terms, and how they translate into regular English:

Ducks on the pond: This baseball term means that runners are on base. If a batter comes up with two runners on, you might here his teammates yell from the dugout, "Get a hit, ducks on the pond!" The runners are the ducks; the bases are the pond.

Dropping dimes: We're not exactly sure where this basketball term originated, but it means to record assists. If a good point guard like Chris Paul has 10 assists in a game, another player might say that "Paul was dropping dimes tonight."

Taking it to the house: In football, if a defensive player intercepts a ball and returns it for a touchdown, the announcer might say that he "took it to the house." Other players might call it a "Pick-6." A pick is another word for an interception, and a touchdown is worth six points, hence the "Pick-6."

Downtown: In basketball, any area behind the three-point line is referred to as "downtown." If Candace Parker makes a bunch of three-pointers in a WNBA game, fans will say that she was shooting well from downtown.

Lighting the Lamp: When a goal is scored in hockey, a light behind the net usually goes off to let the crowd know what happened. Therefore, hockey fans will refer to lighting the lamp. If Alex Ovechkin scores two goals in a game, a reporter might say that he "lit the lamp" two times.

Round-Tripper: A round-tripper is another name for a home run. If a batter blasts a homer, he trots around the bases and returns to home plate again, completing the round trip.

One of the most interesting parts of sports is the terminology that develops. Players, coaches, fans and reporters use colorful terms to describe exciting plays, creating a language unique to the game.

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