where was the first game of tennis played
History of tennis
Tennis comes from the French tenez , the plural imperative form of the verb tenir , to hold , meaning `` hold ! '' , `` receive ! '' or `` take ! '' , an interjection used as a call from the server to his opponent to indicate that he is about to serve . Racket derives from the Arabic rakhat , meaning the palm of the hand . Deuce comes from à deux le jeu , meaning `` to both is the game '' ( that is , the two players have equal scores ) . The origin of the use of Love for zero is disputed . It is possible that it derives from `` l'oeuf '' , the French word for `` egg '' , representing the shape of a zero . Another possibility is that it derives from the Dutch expression `` iets voor lof doen '' , which means to do something for praise , implying no monetary stakes . The reason for the numbering of scores being `` 15 '' , `` 30 '' and `` 40 '' is unknown . Historical sources suggest the system was originally 15 , 30 , 45 with the 45 simplified to 40 over time . Common theories are that it originated from the quarters of a clock , or from gambling stakes .
Tennis comes from the French tenez , the plural imperative form of the verb tenir , to hold , meaning `` hold ! '' , `` receive ! '' or `` take ! '' , an interjection used as a call from the server to his opponent to indicate that he is about to serve . Racket derives from the Arabic rakhat , meaning the palm of the hand . Deuce comes from à deux le jeu , meaning `` to both is the game '' ( that is , the two players have equal scores ) . The origin of the use of Love for zero is disputed . It is possible that it derives from `` l'oeuf '' , the French word for `` egg '' , representing the shape of a zero . Another possibility is that it derives from the Dutch expression `` iets voor lof doen '' , which means to do something for praise , implying no monetary stakes . The reason for the numbering of scores being `` 15 '' , `` 30 '' and `` 40 '' is unknown . Historical sources suggest the system was originally 15 , 30 , 45 with the 45 simplified to 40 over time . Common theories are that it originated from the quarters of a clock , or from gambling stakes .