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Home › Baby Names Directory › Tennis

Tennis

♂ Boy

How to Pronounce Tennis

Pronounced TEN-is /ˈtɛn.ɪs/Low

Meaning: Tennis is most plausibly a clipped form of the surname-name Tennyson or a variant of Dennis, which comes from the Greek Dionysios, tied to the god Dionysus. Its likeness to the sport is almost certainly a coincidence of sound, since the boys given it appear in early-century family records where surnames and saints' names circulated freely, so the exact route is uncertain.Low

In 30 seconds: Tennis is a rare early-century boy's name, probably from Tennyson or Dennis rather than the sport. It appeared thinly around the nineteen-twenties (said TEN-is).
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Origin LowEnglish, Greek
MeaningTennis is most plausibly a clipped form of the surname-name Tennyson or a variant of Dennis, which comes from the Greek Dionysios, tied to the god Dionysus. Its likeness to the sport is almost certainly a coincidence of sound, since the boys given it appear in early-century family records where surnames and saints' names circulated freely, so the exact route is uncertain.
U.S. rank (1967)#3924 ↗ Rising
1967 U.S. births6 boys (0.00% of U.S. boys)
Peak year1926
Total births (all-time)≈ 202

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

peak 192619131967

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Tennis looks like the sport but almost certainly traces to Tennyson, an English surname, or to Dennis, from the Greek Dionysios. Early-twentieth-century American families often turned surnames and clipped forms into first names, and Tennis reads best as one of those, though we flag the uncertainty.

Tennis dotted the American records in the early nineteen-hundreds, reaching only about fourteen boys a year and never becoming standard. A boy named Tennis at its 1926 showing would belong to the generation now around a century old.

Did you know? Despite the spelling, the name predates tennis as a mass pastime in these homes, pointing to Tennyson or Dennis as the real source rather than the game.
Overall data confidence 28%
References - Tennis — Likely short form of Tennyson or variant of Dennis < Greek Dionysios; sport homophone coincidental; uncertain.

Variations

TennysonDennisDenisTennison

Nicknames

TenDenny

Famous Bearers

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If you like Tennis…

Tennyson— a likely full source of the short form
Dennis— a possible parent via Dionysios
Ellis— a comparable surname-style boy's name
Travis— another surname turned given name

Explore names like Tennis

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Frequently Asked

What does the name Tennis mean?

It is most likely a short form of Tennyson or a variant of Dennis (from Greek Dionysios); the sport word is a coincidence.

How do you pronounce Tennis?

It is said TEN-is /ˈtɛn.ɪs/ - two syllables, stress on the first.

Is Tennis a boy or girl name?

Tennis is used as a a boy's name.

How popular is Tennis?

It was always rare in the United States, given to only about fourteen boys a year even at its peak in the nineteen-twenties.

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