balls

/ bɔːlz /

plural noun

1. the testicles

2. so as to be rendered powerless

3. nonsense; rubbish

4. courage; forcefulness

interjection

1. an exclamation of strong disagreement, contempt, annoyance, etc

Usage

Both its anatomical senses and its various extended senses nowadays have far less impact than they used to, and seem unlikely to cause offence, though some older or more conservative people may object. Interestingly, its use in the sense of courage is exactly paralleled in the Spanish term «cojones»

Example Sentences

The idea started with Robson in 1974, as he taught students at the University of Melbourne by turning wooden balls into models of atoms.

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“You can see it’s balls in, off the plate, and he’s not really giving himself a chance to hit a mistake,” Roberts said.

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Heat and humidity can affect the court speed, and balls and string technology also play a significant part.

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She pushed singles, 48 in total, and the four boundaries that came in her last 10 balls were as many as she scored in her first 50.

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Knight had 15 from her first 50 balls, then made 64 from her next 61.

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Related Words

• arrogance 
• audacity 
• boldness 
• gall