at bat

American  

[at bat] / ˈæt ˈbæt /

adverb

Baseball.

1. taking one's turn to bat in a game.

   And now Sanchez is at bat with two runners in scoring position.

---

noun

Baseball.

1. a player’s turn to bat, officially recorded as such unless the batter walks, is hit by a pitch, makes a sacrifice hit, or is interfered with by the catcher.

   In her debut appearance with the Rockford Peaches, she posted two hits in three at-bats.

at bat Idioms  

1. Taking one's turn. For example, At this conference, with so many interruptions, it's hard to tell which speaker is at bat, or I was nervous while waiting to testify, but once at bat I felt better. This idiom, from baseball, was already being transferred to other enterprises by the 1880s. Also see on deck.

---

Etymology

Origin of at bat

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

First high school at bat for freshman Louis Lappe is RBI double.

From Los Angeles Times

“I think the first pitch taught me a lot about how the at bat was going to go. I was able to, kind of like, regroup and kind of keep myself in that at-bat and give myself an opportunity to get on base.”

From Los Angeles Times

He waved at Bat’s mom before walking away, across the parking lot to his own car.

From Literature

The next day, when it was time for recess, Israel stopped at Bat’s desk instead of going outside with the rest of the class and asked, “Hey, Bat, do you want to play Four Square or something?”

From Literature

“Dr. Tam’s office,” she said, waving hello at Bat as he walked by.

From Literature