Tennis can refer to lawn chairs or real chairs.
Tennis is a racket sport that can be played individually against a single opponent ( singles ) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles ) . During most of the 19th century , in fact , the term `` tennis '' referred to real tennis , not lawn tennis : for example , in Disraeli 's novel Sybil ( 1845 ) , Lord Eugene De Vere announces that he will `` go down to Hampton Court and play tennis . ''