ball game

or ballgame

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See synonyms for ball game on Thesaurus.com

noun

any game played with a ball, especially baseball or softball.

Informal. a situation and all its attendant circumstances: Having a new administration in power changes the entire ball game at city hall.Compare new ball game.

Archaeology. a ceremonial game of both ritual and sporting significance, played by teams on a ball court in Mesoamerican cultures from the Preclassic period to the Spanish conquest.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of ball game

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use ball game in a sentence

A couple of summers ago I sat with Zamperini at a ballgame at Fenway Park.
Dick Cheney vs. ‘Unbroken’|Mike Barnicle|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Parenting a kid that can get from place to place under his own steam is a whole new ballgame.
Kids Eat the Darndest Things: Laundry Pods, Teething Necklaces, and More Of The Weirdest Stuff Sending Kids to the E.R.|Russell Saunders|November 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Freezing rain, on the other hand, is a whole different ballgame.
How to Survive a Southern Ice Storm|Nicholas Isabella|February 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Met him on the D train going to Yankee Stadium one day and spent that afternoon watching a ballgame with him in the press box.
The Strange and Mysterious Death of Mrs. Jerry Lee Lewis|Richard Ben Cramer|January 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST

It's a whole new ballgame in the U.S. I cannot think of a more irresponsible way of running the U.S. government.
Senate Hearing to Push for Guantánamo Closure, Plan to Move Detainees|Miranda Green|July 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He said, "I have an undershirt on today," it was at some ballgame.
Warren Commission (2 of 26): Hearings Vol. II (of 15)|The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy

British Dictionary definitions for ball game

ball game

noun

any game played with a ball

US and Canadian a game of baseball

informal a situation; state of affairs (esp in the phrase a whole new ball game)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with ball game

ballgame

see whole new ballgame.

ball game

or ballgame

Origin of ball game

Words related to ball game

How to use ball game in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for ball game

Other Idioms and Phrases with ball game