Each day during the 2014 World Cup the languagecaster team explains a key word or phrase for learners of English in our World Cup Language posts. Today, we focus on the phrase ‘penalty shout‘. Why not try our World Cup Word Quiz, too, to see how well you know your football language!World Cup Phrase – Penalty shout
A penalty shout (or a shout for a penalty) is when one team claims they should have had a penalty but this claim is usually denied or turned down by the referee. The idea behind this expression is that a team ‘shouts’ for a penalty, i.e. they ask the referee to award them a spot kick. The noun phrase ‘penalty shout‘ sometimes collocates with the adjective ‘good’ or ‘decent’, for example, a decent penalty shout – which means that on another day another referee might have given the penalty.
- Example: France felt they had a decent penalty shout in their game against Germany but the referee turned down their appeals.
- Example: The team’s shout for a penalty was ignored by the officials.
