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Unraveling Tennis: Why Scores Are 'Love' and Not Just Zero
Tennis scoring is famously unique, using "love" for zero and a "15, 30, 40" progression instead of simple numbers. These peculiar terms have surprisingly ancient and debated origins.
The "15, 30, 40" progression is widely believed to originate from the face of a clock, where a hand was moved to mark points at 15, 30, and 45 minutes; the 45 was likely shortened to 40 for ease of pronunciation and to maintain a two-point margin to win after deuce. As for "love," the most popular theory links it to the French word "l'oeuf," meaning "the egg," which visually resembles the number zero. Other theories suggest it comes from the Dutch word "lof" (honor), or the phrase "playing for love" (of the game), implying playing without any score.
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