Blacktop is the dark, smooth pavement you see on playgrounds, parking lots, and many roads. It's made from asphalt, a mixture of crushed rock, sand, and a sticky black substance from petroleum that holds everything together. When workers lay fresh blacktop, they pour it hot and use heavy rollers to press it flat and smooth.

Over time, weather and sunlight turn it gray, but people still call it blacktop. Many schools have blacktop courts where kids play basketball, foursquare, or hopscotch. The hard, flat surface makes it perfect for bouncing balls and riding bikes.

As a verb, to blacktop something means to pave it with asphalt. A construction crew might blacktop a driveway or resurface a worn-out parking lot. On hot summer days, blacktop absorbs heat from the sun and can get hot enough to feel hot through your shoes, which is why playgrounds sometimes seem hotter than the grass nearby.