ball
noun
a spherical or approximately spherical body or shape; sphere.
ball
1 American
[bawl]
/ bɔl /
noun
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a spherical or approximately spherical body or shape; sphere.
He rolled the piece of paper into a ball.
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a round or roundish body, of various sizes and materials, either hollow or solid, for use in games, as baseball, football, tennis, or golf.
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a game played with a ball, especially baseball.
The boys are out playing ball.
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Baseball. a pitched ball, not swung at by the batter, that does not pass over home plate between the batter's shoulders and knees.
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Military.
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a solid, usually spherical projectile for a cannon, rifle, pistol, etc., as distinguished from a shell.
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projectiles, especially bullets, collectively.
-
-
any part of a thing, especially of the human body, that is rounded or protuberant.
the ball of the thumb.
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a round mass of food, as of chopped meat, dough, or candy.
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Slang: Vulgar. Usually balls. a testicle.
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Slang: Vulgar. balls,
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Horticulture. a compact mass of soil covering the roots of an uprooted tree or other plant.
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Literary. a planetary or celestial body, especially the earth.
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Mathematics. (in a metric space) the set of points whose distance from the zero element is less than, or less than or equal to, a specified number.
verb (used with object)
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balls,
present (3rd person singular)
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balled,
past participle, past
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balling
present participle
-
to make into a ball (sometimes followed byup ).
The children were balling up snow to make a snowman.
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to wind into balls.
to ball cotton.
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Slang: Vulgar. to have sexual intercourse with.
verb (used without object)
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balls,
present (3rd person singular)
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balled,
past participle, past
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balling
present participle
-
to form or gather into a ball.
When the spun sugar balls, the candy has cooked sufficiently.
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to play basketball.
There’s no doubt the kid can ball, but the recruiters are also aware that he’s barely passing his math and science classes.
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Slang: Vulgar. to have sexual intercourse.
verb phrase
idioms
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start the ball rolling, to put into operation; begin.
The recreation director started the ball rolling by having all the participants introduce themselves.
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carry the ball, to assume the responsibility; bear the burden.
You can always count on him to carry the ball in an emergency.
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play ball,
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to begin or continue playing a game.
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to start or continue any action.
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to work together; cooperate.
union leaders suspected of playing ball with racketeers.
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keep the ball rolling, to continue or give renewed vigor to an activity already under way.
When their interest lagged, he tried to keep the ball rolling.
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drop the ball, to make a mistake or miss an opportunity at a critical moment.
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on the ball,
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alert and efficient or effective.
If you don't get on the ball, you'll be fired.
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indicating intelligence or ability.
The tests show your students don't have much on the ball. The new manager has a lot on the ball.
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ball the jack,
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to act with speed.
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to stake everything on one attempt.
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run with the ball, to assume responsibility or work enthusiastically.
If management approves the concept, we'll run with the ball.
ball
2
American
[bawl]
/ bɔl /
noun
-
a large, usually lavish, formal party featuring social dancing and sometimes given for a particular purpose, as to introduce debutantes or benefit a charitable organization.
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Informal. a thoroughly good time.
Have a ball on your vacation!
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a competitive event in ballroom culture, featuring categories of fashion, performance, and dance.
Ball
3
American
[bawl]
/ bɔl /
noun
-
George W(ildman) 1909–1994, U.S. lawyer, investment banker, and government official.
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John, died 1381, English priest: one of the leaders of Wat Tyler's peasants' revolt in 1381.
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Lucille, 1911–89, U.S. actress.
ball
1
British
/ bɔːl /
noun
-
a spherical or nearly spherical body or mass
a ball of wool
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a round or roundish body, either solid or hollow, of a size and composition suitable for any of various games: football, golf, billiards, etc
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a ball propelled in a particular way in a sport
a high ball
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any of various rudimentary games with a ball
to play ball
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cricket a single delivery of the ball by the bowler to the batsman
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baseball a single delivery of the ball by a pitcher outside certain limits and not swung at by the batter
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a solid nonexplosive projectile for a firearm Compare shell
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such projectiles collectively
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any more or less rounded part or protuberance
the ball of the foot
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slang a testicle See balls
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vet science another word for bolus
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horticulture the hard mass of roots and earth removed with the rest of the plant during transplanting
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a very strong, fit, or forceful person
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to have the chance of doing something
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to maintain the progress of a project, plan, etc
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informal alert; informed
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informal to cooperate
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to open or initiate (an action, discussion, movement, etc)
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you are obliged to make the next move
verb
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(tr) to make, form, wind, etc, into a ball or balls
to ball wool
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(intr) to gather into a ball or balls
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taboo to copulate (with)
ball
2
British
/ bɔːl /
noun
-
a social function for dancing, esp one that is lavish or formal
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informal a very enjoyable time (esp in the phrase have a ball )
Ball
3
British
/ bɔːl /
noun
ball
More Idioms
Usage
Sense 9 of this word was formerly considered to be taboo, and it was labelled as such in previous editions of Collins English Dictionary . However, it has now become acceptable in speech, although some older or more conservative people may object to its use
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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ballsimple
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ballssimple
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have balledperfect
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has balledperfect
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am ballingprogressive
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are ballingprogressive
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is ballingprogressive
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have been ballingperfect progressive
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has been ballingperfect progressive
Past
-
balledsimple
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had balledperfect
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was ballingprogressive
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were ballingprogressive
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had been ballingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ball1
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English bal, balle, probably from Old English beall (unattested), from Germanic ballaz (unattested); compare Old Norse bǫllr, Old High German bal, ballo, balla, German Ball, Dutch bal; perhaps akin to Latin follis “leather bag, bellows”; see ballocks
Origin of ball2
First recorded in 1600–10; from French bal, noun derivative of baler (now baller ) “to dance,” from Late Latin ballāre, from Greek (Magna Graecia) ballízein “to dance”
Explanation
Always round, often bouncy, a ball is a vital part of many games and sports, from soccer to four square to ping pong. The most common ball is the kind you hit, kick, bat, or duck and avoid on a playground, court, or field. In fact, most sports involve a ball in one way or another. Another fun kind of ball is a grand party that usually includes dancing, food, live music, and guests dressed up in glamorous clothing. These two meanings have different origins — the "fancy dance" kind of ball comes from a Greek root, ballizein, "to dance or jump about."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
With two outs, Dodgers baserunners were going on contact and all three crossed the plate before Cardinals first baseman Alec Burleson could retrieve the ball and throw it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
Catcher Will Smith, who the Dodgers also activated from the IL Tuesday, put the ball in the air in his first four at-bats and was finally rewarded in the seventh inning with an RBI double.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
One early hit was the Ballbarrow: a wheelbarrow that featured a ball instead of a wheel.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
Amazing the way he's gifted with the ball, the way he manipulates the ball, and also the way he's able to think for himself.
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026
The size of a golf ball, skittering past me on the ground, coming from behind.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
However, City have raised over £286m in player sales with 2026 World Cup Golden Ball winner Rodri making a £65m move to Barcelona, and Tijani Reijnders joining Al-Qadsiah for £52m.
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026
The cover of “Recipes for the Melting Pot” features a photo of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz in their spotless kitchen.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
It stemmed from a previous discussion between Macron and bin Salman about their shared passion for Japanese comics, "in particular Dragon Ball Z," advisers to the president told reporters on Monday.
From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026
A nearly 500-page special examination released by Kentucky State Auditor Allison Ball in June raised broader concerns about JCPS’s management and finances.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
She’s been like this ever since she got her Mastermind Inventor ability from the Crystal Ball.
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
Sonmez struggled to get balls into play whenever Gauff landed a first serve in the first set, with the world number four winning 93% of those points.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026
His wide base left him uncomfortably stretched out, and his hand position was leading to a barrage of routine ground balls.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
This became frustratingly evident to the White Sox last season as they watched seemingly well-struck fly balls die on the warning track and grounders fail to scoot through the infield.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
Research has shown that every mile per hour of added bat speed results in balls traveling six to seven feet farther.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
It was a wild ruckus outside with leaves and branches blowing by and Lulu hiding under the bed trying to pretend she wasn’t scared, just curious about those dust balls.
From "Ida B" by Katherine Hannigan
The Chinese space effort, by contrast, is “all balled up—security, military, all together, all in one.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
“That’s my life and my creativity balled into this thing called music. It’s personal.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 31, 2024
Workers balled up bread for bait and threw lines over the side of the platform.
From Slate ● Dec. 16, 2023
And on the desk, near the room phone and a stamped envelope, a letter is balled up.
From New York Times ● Nov. 8, 2023
My socks balled up on the hardwood floor made a greater statement than any of their hokey claptrap with the carefully matted frames and big curly signatures in the lower left-hand corners.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
"It's all dog, all the time," he said of Roscoe's balling talents.
From Barron's ● May 10, 2026
The firm renamed it Tropicana Brands Group, balling up other beleaguered beverage properties too, and packed it full of debt.
From Slate ● Apr. 20, 2026
They are local heroes in brilliant yellow who have risen from the brink of bankruptcy to balling like a frost-kissed Brazil.
From BBC ● Mar. 16, 2026
I wasn’t balling out of control, but I had some disposable income and idle time.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2025
A hand dropped on my shoulder, and I ended my closing statement, balling my hands into fists.
From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
